I'm Here: The Reboot
by Oneshot Agency
Summary: Percy Jackson was presumed dead when his daughter Alex was just four years old. Now she is at Camp Half-Blood with her mother, enjoying her summer before she goes back to school for her junior year of high school. However, a prophecy has other plans for Alex's summer as it calls for the blood of Poseidon, twelve years after it called for her father's. Rewrite of an old story.
1. Chapter 1

Alex Jackson could tell something was wrong.

Her parents were being loud and yelling words at each other that she didn't understand. She was just trying to build with her Legos when she heard her mom shout. Alarmed, she looked up from her toys to see her mom looking angrily at her dad while he said something to her, which was then heavily rebutted by her.

But her parents were saying so many big words, they could have been arguing over last night's episode of _Jeopardy_ for all she knew.

Even Alex figured, though, that this was worse than their usual bickering. While Alex was only four, she still knew that her mom definitely looked much more irate than she had ever seen her, and her dad more sad than she had ever seen him.

The fighting continued everyday for a week before it seemed to calm back down. The house was quiet again. But why was mom crying all the time? Why did dad cry everytime he hugged her?

Alex didn't know, but she was getting more attention than usual so she was thriving. Her parents had been spending a lot of time at camp recently, leaving little Alex behind with her grandma. While she loved her doting grandparents, she'd rather be with her parents even if they were a little sad. She didn't know why they were suddenly going to camp in the winter without her because the whole family always went during the summer. It was Alex's favorite place.

Alex was even more confused when she was suddenly included on one of these trips to camp, but excited nonetheless. She would get to see Chiron, who always had candy for her. Her parents were silent on the drive, but the young child was too excited to notice. Her grey eyes sparkled happily once the car stopped, and mom came back to get her from her car seat.

Alex felt like she was dragging her parents behind her, her little legs wanting to reach camp as fast as she could. Her mother and father held her hands between them, watching her excitement with sad eyes.

Once they arrived, Alex was put into the care of Uncle Grover while her parents went somewhere with Chiron. She was overjoyed to be back at camp, where everything was pretty and it was always warm. In Alex's eyes, nothing could ever go wrong at camp.

The next day, Alex was awaken in the early hours by Aunt Juniper. The young child had stayed with them overnight. Uncle Grover had said something about her parents needing "alone time" but Alex didn't know what that meant.

Swinging between the adults' hands, the trio made their way to the Big House. It was still dark out as a the sun had not risen yet. In front of the porch was Alex's parents, Chiron, and another dark horse.

"Pony!" Alex exclaimed once she laid her eyes on it. Finally reaching the group, Alex separated from Grover and Juniper to wrap her little arms around her mother's leg, still staring at the horse.

The horse seemed to look right at her father, who laughed and nodded. The horse lowered its head and stepped close to the girl. Alex tentatively reached her hand out after some encouragement from her father to pet the horse's nose.

"I like ponies," Alex whispered into her mother's leg.

There was some chatter between the adults while Alex stayed tight on her mother's leg. She was too tired to decipher what they were saying. Her mother always told her to listen to conversations so she could learn more words, but, quite frankly, it was hard so Alex rarely listened.

She felt herself falling asleep against her mother when she felt her mother's body shift and she was suddenly scooped up into her mother's arms. Warm and safe, clinging tightly to her mother's neck, the young child felt like nothing could go wrong. Then, she looked up at her mom and was surprised to see her crying. She turned to her dad to see if everything was okay to find him crying as well. Her young eyes went back and forth between her parents, trying to understand the situation. There didn't seem to be anything to cry about, but her parents were crying. Should she be crying?

Before she could trigger the tears that all children seem to have on reserve, her father reached his arms out to take her from her mother. Alex happily switched over, gripping his shirt in her little hands. She smiled at him despite his tears.

She definitely was a daddy's girl, loving his jokes and various storytelling voices. She loved swimming with him because he would make animals, characters, and toys out of the water, and just last summer, he showed her how to do the same with basic shapes. He always told her how smart and strong she was going to be. She was always fascinated with his various scars, often taking a marker and drawing pictures over them.

Her father kneeled down and released her so his daughter could stand in front of him. He held her hand gently and cupped her cheek fondly with his other hand. Alex could feel the roughness of his hand, scars that she had drawn over countless times, against her cheek. It was warm, and smelt of lavender hand soap.

His eyes were shining, but he smiled at her as he silently etched her face into his memory for the millionth time.

Alex reached her hand up and squashed his nose with a laugh. "Hi daddy," she said.

He took in a deep breath, and pulled her into a tight hug, which she happily returned.

"I love you, baby, so much," he said into her ear.

He pulled back to look at her, and Alex couldn't look away from his eyes. She always tried to find a marker that matched his eyes, but nothing could give them justice.

"Alex, I need you to listen to me," he started, snapping Alex out of her daydream about markers. "Daddy is going to be going away for a little while. I have to go somewhere to help camp, okay?"

Alex nodded vigorously. "Vacation?"

Her dad smiled. "Yeah, like a vacation. But I need you to take care of mom while I'm away. Make sure she doesn't watch too much Jeopardy."

Alex nodded again. "No _Jeopardy_. Got it," she said, like she was making a promise to the president. She leaned in close so only her dad could hear her say, "I don't like _Jeopardy_."

Her dad grinned and pulled her into a hug again. "Be safe. Do what your mom tells you. And don't eat all of the cookies!"

The young child nodded into his chest. He placed a long kiss on her dark hair as he held her, before finally pulling back and standing up. He handed her over to Grover, and watched as her dad hugged and kissed her mother. Once the couple finally separated, her mom took her hand, and led her away from the Big House. This left her dad, Chiron, Grover, and another young man still standing around the horse at the base of the steps.

"Mommy, who is that?" Alex asked, pointing at the unknown person who had the same hair as her dad.

"That's Able, your father's brother. He's going with your dad," she said. "You can meet him when they come back." She took a deep breath for a reason Alex didn't know.

Finally, her dad and Able mounted the horse who then spread the biggest wings Alex had ever seen. Alex couldn't pull her eyes from the majestic creature in front of her. She was entranced by its beauty.

"Mommy, that's a-a peg-a pega...," Alex struggled to remember the name from her father's stories. He had told her of flying horses before, but the name simply wasn't coming to her young mind.

"Pegasus, sweetie. His name is Blackjack. Your dad has known him for years," her mother explained softly, squeezing her daughter's hand.

"Pegasus," Alex said slowly, liking the word on her tongue. She wanted one.

The pegasus and the two men on his back turned to the mother and daughter for one final look.

"Bye daddy!" Alex yelled, waving her hand excitedly over her head.

Her father smiled and waved back, before saying something that Alex couldn't hear. The pegasus suddenly took off, taking a few steps before jumping into the air and flexing his wings, pushing it and his riders up into the air.

Alex's mouth fell open, never seeing something as beautiful.

Yeah, she _definitely_ wanted one for her birthday.

/ _One month later_ /

Her mother seemed really worried all the time, and Alex was starting to wonder if she should be too.

Ever since her dad left, they had been at camp which by no means was Alex complaining. She had free range as long as an adult was with her, and she could see the beach or Big House. Lucky for her, almost all of the older campers and adults loved the little girl (there were a couple mean children of Ares that Alex didn't like) so she could always find someone to join her on her adventures around camp. She loved to knock on the doors of cabins to see what people were up to. She would join campers on inspection rounds, or at the bonfire and volleyball courts. There was never a dull day at Camp Half-Blood for little Alex.

That was at least until winter break ended, and everyone left to go back to school. Alex didn't completely understand what school was, but it was the reason everyone gave her before they took off and disappeared over the hill.

With very few campers left, Alex was left being with her mother everyday. At first it was exciting, being in the same room as Chiron and the ping pong table. She'd climb underneath the table and around the chairs, popping up to scare the adults. They would laugh, rub her head affectionately before going back to work. But soon, all places that Alex could climb around had lost their appeal and whenever she tried to scare someone, they would give her a quick smile and then go back to ignoring her.

Her mom wasn't even as strict with her. Alex would pull on her sleeves, saying she needed to use the bathroom when she really didn't; she just wanted to pull her mom away from the maps and diagrams to focus on her for just one second. Instead, her mother would just smile sadly and say, "You know the way to the bathroom, sweetie, you can go. I'm busy."

It was starting to get on her nerves, and worse, her dad still wasn't home. Everytime Alex would ask while they were getting ready to go to bed, her mom would sigh and say, "Soon." She would then tuck the little girl in before she could even come up with a response. Everyday, that "soon" became less and less convincing.

However, Alex had innocent hope that her dad would return; there was probably just some bad traffic.

They were in the mess hall one day, about a month after her father had left, enjoying some breakfast. Or at least, trying to. Alex's mother was overlooking a map, _again_ , mumbling to herself while she ate some waffles. Alex was sitting next to her, eating some pancakes, now all too familiar with the silence. She knew better than to interrupt her mom while she was busy.

Suddenly, a loud horn could be heard from the beach, signaling that the camp had company. Her mother's eyes widen and she immediately dropped everything she was doing, picked up her daughter, and started to run to the beach. Alex held onto her mom for dear life as they followed the crowd to the beach.

A small crowd had already formed by the time they arrived. Alex could see Chiron in the front, taller than the rest. Her mother slowed and pushed her way through the crowd, keeping Alex close to her chest.

Finally, the crowd broke and they emerged next to Chiron and Grover, who was assisting a young man who Alex came to recognize as Able. Alex didn't notice her mother's frantic searching, but she did feel her chest beginning to heave against her.

"Chiron," her mom gasped out.

The centaur turned his attention to the two of them, his eyes sad. "Grover," he said, "perhaps you should take little Alex here for a walk."

Alex looked quickly between Grover and her mom, noticing that both of them were crying. Again, she wasn't sure what they were crying about, but she felt like she was missing something.

Grover wordlessly took Alex into his arms, and started to walk through the crowd which had parted for the duo. No one could meet her eyes. She twisted in the satyr's arms so she could look back at her mother.

Alex could hear her mom as they walked away, for once listening in. She had fallen to her knees next to Able who was still lying on the ground.

"Able, please," she could hear her mom plead.

"I'm sorry, Annabeth, we were in Tartarus and he got captured-" he started, but he was interrupted by the older women's sobs. Alex then lost sight of them, and eventually couldn't hear them.

The little girl was trying so hard to put the pieces together like her mom taught her. Something did not make sense to the little girl, but what?

They had just reached the mess hall when she thought about Blackjack and her dad.

 _And Able._

Her father was with Able when he left, and now he wasn't.

"Uncle Grover?" Alex started. "Where's my daddy?"

Grover's steps faltered and he came to a stop in the middle of the mess hall. He set the girl down at one of the tables and kneeled down to her level so he could make eye contact.

"Nemo," he started, using his nickname for her due to her obsession with the movie, "something happened to your dad while he was away. That means he's going to be gone a little longer than we thought."

"Is that why mommy is sad?" Alex asked softly.

Grover's composure was starting to crack under the girl's innocence. He took a breath. "Yeah, she's sad that she won't be able to see him soon. But don't worry," he took the girls hand and put it on his chest, near his heart, "I can feel your dad in here. He's okay. He just hit a little bump in the road."

"Just a little traffic?" Alex sniffled.

"Yeah, Nemo," Grover grinned slightly, "Your dad is strong. I know, right now, there's nothing he wants more than to be with you and your mom."

That night, once her mom finally returned to the Poseidon cabin to relieve Grover of his babysitting duties, Alex asked a question.

"Mommy, when is daddy going to be home?"

Instead of shying away, her mother bit her lip and sat down next to her daughter on the bed. She ran her hand through Alex's long, curly locks.

"I don't know, baby," she whispered. Her mom pulled back the covers, and slid into the bed next to her. "I don't know."

Alex cried herself to sleep, snuggled tightly into her mother's chest while her mom silently prayed to every god she could name to bring her daughter's father back.

 _/ 12 years later /_

Finals sucked, but Alex was finally able to walk out the school's door for the last time until the next school year. She was saying goodbye to homework, projects, exams, and annoying lab partners, and saying hello to swordfighting, archery, canoeing, and lava walls. It was a trade she would make any day.

She waved goodbye to her school friends, some of whom she would keep in contact with over the summer, before hopping on the bus to head home. Sophomore year was a drag so she was ready to leave it all behind, ready to enjoy the summer at camp before she had to enter into the deathtrap of junior year.

She arrived back at the Jackson apartment, not surprised to already see suitcases in the front foyer. They were always packed for camp, just in case they needed to leave in a moment's notice. She called a greeting to her mom, hearing a reply coming from the kitchen so she followed the voice and peaked her head into the doorway.

Her mom was making sandwiches for their drive as she always did, and she looked up when she saw her daughter. Annabeth was already dressed in a camp shirt and jean bermuda shorts. "Hey Alex, I'll be done with these in a minute and then we'll be set to leave. You packed everything, right?"

Alex confirmed her luggage and went to her bedroom to grab her things. She came back with her bags and stood waiting for her mother by the front door. Once they gathered everything and headed out the door, Alex made one last call for anything they might have forgotten before they closed the door behind them.

Her mother cursed in Greek and dropped her bags. She ran back into the apartment and emerged a minute later with a picture frame which she handed to Alex while she picked her bags back up.

Alex looked at it for the millionth time while she waited for her mother to be ready. It was an old photo of the family, before her dad died. Her mom and dad were sitting next to each other with Alex on their lap on the young Jackson's fourth birthday. She was wearing a small cone hat on her dark mane of hair, smiling gleefully at the camera while her parents were laughing in her direction.

According to her mom, little Alex had just passed gas and was delighted with herself while the adults laughed. Annabeth claimed to love the picture because it was one of the few where Alex was actually looking at the camera. Alex knew it was because it was the last photo the family took together before her father went missing a few months later. Nonetheless, it came to camp with them every summer.

Once her mom was situated, they headed out into the streets of Manhattan to load up their car. Despite being a single mother, Annabeth made more than enough as an architect for the two to live comfortably in a nice apartment with their own car. After they made everything fit into the back, they piled in and took off into New York traffic.

Her mom left the family picture on the center console of the car as they drove. Alex found herself staring at it again, even though it had been on her mom's bedside table for ten years.

In all honesty, Alex didn't like the photo. Not because of the photo itself, but because it made her realize that the man in the picture is foreign to her. If she didn't have pictures of him, Alex is certain she would not remember what her father looked like. She realized a few years prior that she didn't have any memories of his stature, his eyes, or even his hair. The only memories she had were of his voice and touch. She also didn't know why the scent of lavender made her heart twist painfully in her chest. But if that man walked by her on the streets of New York, Alex would probably keep walking.

These were all secrets she never uttered to her mother. As far as her mom knew, she remembered everything about her father. She knew that he had a scar on his forehead from her memories, definitely not because she noticed it in a picture she was looking at a couple weeks before. Alex hated lying to her mother, but she knew it would kill her if she admitted to not remembering him. Even twelve years later, Alex still felt like she had to protect her mother.

However, in her mom's defense, she had come a long way. Alex does remember all of the sleepless nights they had once her father was officially declared as missing, her mother waking up from nightmares every night. Her mother would hold her close as they cried together. They stayed at camp that entire year, her mom working around the clock on any leads she had. Finally, after one-too-many close calls, Chiron told Annabeth that she was done with quests and putting her life in danger. It was hard for her at first, but, eventually and slowly, she grieved and started to live her life again. They moved, and Alex started school which almost broke Annabeth again as her baby was suddenly in the care of strangers, but Sally helped her through it. While she still looked at pictures sadly and told old stories longingly, her mother was stronger from it. The few grey hairs that poked out from her blond hair (which Alex always teased her for) did not even begin to tell what her mother had been through, and Alex didn't even know all of the stories yet.

Her mother's voice pulled her from her thoughts. "What's the plan for this summer?" she asked as she pulled around a delivery truck.

Alex shrugged. "I want to finally hit a bullseye this year in archery. I came so close last year. And I want to learn more Latin so when I visit Camp Jupiter, I can understand the signs."

Annabeth gave her daughter a quick look with a coy smile on her face. "What about a certain Sierra? What's the plan there?"

Alex blushed and she felt butterflies in her stomach against her will. "Mom!" she groaned, much to her mother's amusement.

Sierra was Alex's best friend at camp since they were nine. As a daughter of Apollo, Sierra was immediately intrigued by Alex's inability with a bow so she declared herself Alex's personal archery teacher at the age of nine. In the past seven years (attached at the hip, according to her mom), Alex was _this_ close to a bullseye, but it wasn't enough for her friend. Sierra told her that if she didn't make a bullseye this summer, their friendship was over.

Much to Alex's embarrassment, both her mother and Aunt Piper noticed the way Alex looked at the daughter of Apollo three years ago. Piper told her, as a daughter of Aphrodite, that she definitely saw it working out and that she shouldn't be afraid to ask her out. Instead, Alex was _very_ afraid to ask her friend out for fear of ruining everything.

"You told me last summer that you would ask her out, and here we are. You have to do something before someone else does!" her mom said.

Alex sunk deeper into her seat. Her friend was also very pretty which gained the attention of many around camp. Alex would never admit that everytime Sierra came back from a failed date, she felt rejoiced. "I'll talk to Aunt Piper when I get to camp, and I'll see what I can do," she muttered.

While she did have, what many would say, obvious feelings for Sierra, Alex was not at all savvy when talking to love interests. Sierra was the first person Alex opened up to about her family situation. Alex could tell her anything, but as soon as Sierra says, "How does this outfit look on me?" Alex was a gaping fish. While she had improved since the initiation of the crush, she had yet to make a move.

"Good because as soon as you two get together, I can finally give you The Talk," her mom said proudly.

Alex covered her red face with her hands. "Mom, oh my gods, please stop talking!" However, once she heard her mom's boisterous laughs from next to her, Alex couldn't help the giggles that escaped her mouth as the traffic finally opened up, and it was smoothing sailing the rest of the way to camp.

/

 **So here is the start of the rewrite, I hope you guys liked it :)**

 **For people reading this story for the first time, this is a rewrite of my first story on this website. I wrote the old version six years ago, so to say the least, this is going to be a little bit better and also complete. I have high hopes for this story so I really hope you guys like it.**

 **If you are an old person like me who has read my original story, let me know in a review. I would love to know what you think of it.**

 **Sorry for an spelling errors, blah blah blah. See y'all soon.**


	2. Chapter 2

Everyone always told Alex that using a dagger was unnecessarily harder than a sword, but it was in her blood.

She never saw her mom truly fight until Alex was thirteen years old. A hellhound attacked the camp, and Alex watched in shock as her mom killed the monster gracefully and quickly. It was like watching a ballerina with a knife. At that moment, Alex understood why the shorter blade always felt more comfortable in her hand.

She also started to listen to her mom when she was teaching classes in the arena. As a result, Alex became the top knife fighter in the camp, only second to her teacher and mother. While there was not many who preferred daggers to begin with, Alex was quite obviously the best and competed with the most talented swordsmen of camp.

Many older campers always stated that she was cheating, that her genetics already put her at an advantage. They liked to tease her that she could beat them straight out of the womb. And they were right, considering she was the child of the best swordsmen and knife fighter of their generation.

She couldn't imagine just how good her father must have been. After fighting Clarisse La Rue for the first time two years ago (and losing miserably, might she add), Alex asked her mom if her father ever fought Clarisse. Her mother simply laughed and told her daughter that Percy beat Clarisse when he was twelve.

Of course, that gave Alex a little perspective on her father's skills, but he had also fought Ares, Hyperion, Kronos, and Tartarus all before the age of _eighteen_. She couldn't visualize that level of talent because it died with her father. According to Annabeth, no camper came close to her father's swordsmanship in the past two decades. Able, the other son of Poseidon, had lots of potential, but he could not fulfill it quick enough. He was killed on a quest a few years prior by a rogue demigod's arrow. Since then, Annabeth would always say that Alex had the most room for improvement, and the young demigod always hoped to one day reach the level of her parents.

But just maybe not today.

It was an early Thursday morning, two weeks into the summer, when Alex found herself about to fall asleep in her mother's knife fighting class. She had stayed up late the night before, trying to finish a book. As a result, Alex found her eyes shutting against her will during the seven o'clock class. If her mother wasn't the teacher, Alex would have used the time to hone her skill of sleeping while standing.

She and Sierra partnered up to practice the moves that Alex had done thousands of times.

Sierra was the only highlight of the class. They kept passing glances at each other while Annabeth was giving demonstrations, making Alex smile to herself.

Maybe Piper was right.

As they sparred, Alex simply went through the motions, doing enough to not lose but not enough to win. Sierra was a good fighter, but a knife wasn't her weapon of choice as a daughter of Apollo and it showed in her inconsistent movements. Alex felt a yawn rising in her chest.

"Alex!" her mom called. "Get your elbow up!"

Alex saw Sierra grin at her teasingly for getting called out by her mom. She huffed but listened to her mother as their knives continued to flash between them.

She saw an opening in Sierra's defense so she stepped forward and administered a disarming maneuver that was difficult to accomplish with knives. Alex smiled when she saw Sierra's weapon fall to the ground.

"Alex, that was not fast enough," her mom interrupted her self-cheering. "Any seasoned knife fighter would see that you left your right side exposed when you stepped into her. They could have pulled out of your reach easily and countered by a jab in the side," she said, demonstrating her said movements. "Go again."

Alex turned to Sierra and gave her an apologetic look to which she got a small smile back. They both readied themself before fighting again. Alex lunged at Sierra, the flat of the blade in her right hand hitting Sierra's left side. Alex started to feel a wave of success, but instead her mom stopped them.

"No, you did the movement wrong." She pulled Alex out of the fight and stood in her place. She looked at her daughter as she showed the proper step in slow motion. "You stepped with your left foot towards a right-handed opponent. All she would have to do is stick her knife out a few inches and your side is sliced. If you step with your right foot, you pull away from her weapon which protects your side. Understand?"

Alex nodded silently, and got back into position where they resumed fighting.

Anytime Alex incapacitated Sierra, her mom would stop the fight and correct whatever mistake Alex made. She could feel annoyance growing in her chest as more and more campers stopped their own sparring to watch.

After disarming Sierra for the seemingly thousandth time and her mom stopping them yet again, Alex finally spoke up.

"Mom," she said, interrupting whatever her mother was about to go off on, "I think Sierra needs a break." Her annoyance was clear in her voice.

Sierra, who was breathing heavily because she wasn't used to fighting that long, quickly nodded her head. She gave Alex a supportive look before going to the water cooler by the bleachers, leaving Alex and her mom alone.

Her mom sighed. "Alex, you have to improve your fighting skills if you ever want to go on a quest. Right now, I don't think you are ready."

Alex reared back in shock. "Not ready? I've been training with you for how many years now? And I'm not ready?"

Her mom looked at her coolly. "You know the moves, but you're lazy. You don't predict your opponent's next attack. You let your guard down once you think they are beaten. You don't perform the moves quick enough, even though I know you are faster than what you are showing."

Alex threw her hands up exasperated. "Yeah because it's _training_. I'm fighting Sierra who didn't even know how to hold a knife until last year!"

Her mom's eyes flashed. "And you think you will just suddenly do all of those things once you get into a real battle?" She started to walk towards the water cooler.

Alex noticed the arena had cleared out, except for Sierra who was waiting for her by the entrance. Alex waved at her, telling her to leave which she did after looking between Alex and her mom nervously. Alex followed her mom.

"I've been in a real battle before, mom," she argued.

Annabeth turned back to her. "Inside camp's borders, where if you go down, you have ten archers behind you to back you up." She looked at her daughter, almost enviously. "You have never been in a battle _alone_ , in an unfamiliar place. These are stupid mistakes that will harm you or the people around you. I'm trying to protect you." She turned her back to Alex to get water.

Alex huffed again, and ran a hand over her tied-up hair. "You know I'm one of the best in camp. I've proved myself over and over again. What more can I do?"

"So was your father, and look at how that turned out," Annabeth said flatly, still turned away. Alex didn't have to see her mother's face to know it hurt her to say that, but it was the truth. Her mom turned and put her hands on Alex's shoulders. Her mother's eyes, which were an exact reflection of her own, were shining with unshed tears. "Alex, you are sixteen now so one of these days you will go on a quest. The Fates hate our family too much for that not to happen," she said with a heartless laugh, "It is my job to make sure that you are as prepared as you can possibly be. I am going to push you, scold you, and criticize you. I need you to know that I am doing it because I love you. You didn't grow up like your father and I, fighting for our lives at the age of twelve from monsters and gods. I need you to listen to me and take this training seriously because it will save your life one day. I've already lost your father." She pulled her daughter into a tight embrace. "I can't lose you too," she whispered.

Alex blinked back tears and wrapped her arms around her mom, speechless. They stayed in a comfortable silence until Annabeth pulled back and wiped a single tear from her own cheek. She took a deep breath and gave Alex a reassuring smile. "When your moment comes, sweetie, I know you will do great things."

With Alex still not muttering a word, her mom told her that she had to meet with Chiron and that she will see her at lunch. After gathering her things and bidding her goodbye, her mom exited the arena.

Alex stared at an abandoned paper cup filled with water next to the water cooler.

 _Why did I treat her like that? All she wants is to protect me, and I act like a_ σκύλα _to her!_

In a fit of anger at herself, Alex kicked the bleachers and the cup of water exploded next to her. She turned and start to sulk to Cabin Six, feeling utterly pathetic.

Nearby, Sierra was leaning against a tree, no doubt waiting for her. She seemed deep in thought, and she was biting her lip, a nervous habit. Alex always thought it was cute, but she was too mad at herself at the moment to think about it. Sierra looked up when she heard Alex's footsteps and scrambled to catch up to her.

"You okay?" she asked tentatively. She knew Alex and her mom occasionally butt heads due to the genetic stubbornness that ran in the family.

Alex sighed and nodded, then pulled her dark curls from the ponytail she had it in. "Mom was right as usual, and I was just a bitch. What's new?"

They headed to the cabins, where Alex stated her wish to spend the rest of the morning under her bed covers and not reemerge until lunch.

"Well if that is your wish, _princess_ , I guess I'll have to abide by it," Sierra said, trying to lighten the mood. "Are you going to be okay?"

They arrived at her cabin, and Alex nodded, giving her a halfhearted grin. "Thank you, you're the best."

Sierra pursed her lips slightly, like she wanted to say something. Instead, she reached out and gave her best friend's hand a reassuring squeeze before turning and saying "See you at lunch," over her shoulder.

Alex groaned internally at herself, and tiredly shouldered her way into the cabin where all she wanted to do was hide from the world.

/

After a while, Alex realized that her wish of solitude wasn't actually the best idea. She couldn't fall asleep, and she couldn't stop thinking about how rude she was to her mother that morning. It was eating her alive. If there was one thing Alex couldn't do, it was hold grudges against her loved ones.

She continued to toss and turn in her bed, the only person in Cabin Six as everyone else was out being productive members of camp. She looked over at her mom's rack, which was directly across the room from her.

Since Alex was the only person with Poseidon blood in the camp, she was technically the only one allowed to stay there. However, she quickly learned at the age of eleven that it was very lonely so she went back to the Athena cabin with her mom. Sometimes she went there to think, for its peace and quiet. She felt closer to her dad, knowing that he had stayed in the same bunks many years ago. As the years went, she found herself in there more and more. But she always eventually went back to Cabin Six.

Alex also noticed that her mom's bed was a perfect representation of her mother.

At their apartment in Manhattan, her mom's bed was neat but it looked lived it. It wasn't perfectly made everyday, pillows were crooked, sheets weren't crisp and unwrinkled. Her mom always said it was a compromise with her dad; the bed would be made, but not nice enough so her dad could jump on it at anytime and not feel like he was ruining an art piece. She said the habit simply stuck.

However, at camp, her bed was perfect. No pillow out of line, corners perfectly folded at a forty-five degree angle and tucked in, cover pulled up the same spot everyday. It was immaculate.

At home, her mom was human. She would let Alex lead the charge some days, she would tell Alex stories and cry, she would skip a workout with Alex if she was feeling too tired. At home, she was her mom Annabeth Jackson.

Camp was a different story. Here, she was Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena and unofficial leader of camp. A legendary fighter with infinite wisdom and intelligence, she was the one person everyone could count on to lead them to victory. At any bump in the road, all eyes turned to her.

Alex could see the effect it had on her mother. The way she stood taller, spoke louder and clearer, emulating the perfect leader through her actions. Annabeth Chase was perfect in everything she did, and Alex knew how much it exhausted her mother. Alex doesn't know how her mom has done it for so many years, but everytime they crossed the border into camp, Annabeth Jackson became Annabeth Chase.

That's why Alex was so exasperated with her this morning. It was Annabeth Chase that kept nagging and scolding her, and Alex knew this. Then a minute later, it was Annabeth Jackson telling her daughter how much she loved her. If someone had been in the arena when they were by the water cooler, her mother never would have gotten as sentimental as she did. Alex wished she would drop this façade and be herself, even if that version wasn't perfect. She wished her mom understood that she could be a demigod and a human at the same time. She wished her mom would take a breath and relax for just one second at camp.

However, no matter what _version_ her mom was, Alex knew that the way she acted towards her mother that morning was unacceptable. Her mom was her best friend (she wasn't embarrassed to admit it) and she deserved to be treated better.

Alex had heard the lunch horn blow a few minutes ago, and she knew her mom would wait for her before she got food. So she shoved her covers down and stood up out of her bed.

Suddenly, she got the sensation that she was shaking and her first thought was that she stood up too fast. She reached out to grab her bedpost to stable herself when she realized that she actually was shaking, along with everything around her. Books, pencils, and rulers rattled on the tables and desks as everything vibrated. Alex could hear some shrieks of surprise from outside the cabin. And just like that, it was over. Everything stilled and it was silent.

Not only did Long Island not get earthquakes, earthquakes usually meant two things in the demigod world: something was rising from the ground, or something was beneath them. Neither was a good option.

Alex grabbed her knife from her bedside table, and ran out of Cabin Six towards the mess hall. As she ran, she could see other people stumbling from their cabins and following behind her.

Once she arrived, she scanned the growing crowd and spotted her mom standing next to Chiron who had his bow drawn. Alex headed their way, pushing through the crowd. As soon as she was within earshot, she called out to her mom.

At the same time, the ground beneath the hall began to shake again, this time more violently. Plates and glasses fell off tables, shattering on the ground. Anyone who was armed tried to draw their weapon, but many were forced to drop them in order to grab onto something to keep them on their feet. Yells of pain were heard as people fell onto the shattered glass, and small chunks of the pavillion's ceiling started to rain down on the demigods.

Alex stumbled, but miraculously managed to stay on her feet. When she was twenty yards from her mom, there was a large _CRACK_ like a lightning bolt hitting a tree. The loud sound startled her, making her trip over her feet. Alex felt herself tumbling forward, her running body's momentum too much to reverse. She looked down in time to see the 6 foot crack open up right in front of her.

 _Death by tripping over thin air. Nice._

Just as she was about to dive head first towards her great uncle, Alex felt two hands latch around her right ankle. Her body jerked painfully from the sudden stop and her leg felt like it separated from her hip, but the hands held strong. Alex's entire upper body hung over the edge, giving her a front-row seat to the hundred foot drop below her.

"Pull me up, pull me up, pull me up!" she squeaked, reaching her hands frantically behind her to get a grip. More hands grabbed her legs, and dragged her up and away the crack. Alex was still shaking, but she wasn't sure if it was from the ground or fear. The front of her body stung- probably from broken glass- but before she could check, Alex was engulfed in a tight hug.

"Oh my gods!" Sierra pulled back to examine her face, which was thankfully untouched. "You're lucky I'm an archer or I probably would have dropped you! Are you okay?" She gave Alex a quick glance over to make sure no bones were sticking out.

Alex simply nodded, still a little disoriented.

Just as Sierra was about to fuss over the glass in her torso, a horn sounded from the woods. The loud crowd of the dining pavilion quickly silenced, listening for either instructions or a monster's roar. Then chaos broke out as everyone rushed to find their weapon on the floor or scramble back to their cabins to retrieve it.

Alex looked up to see her mom staring right at her from where she had been standing before the earthquake. Piper was at her side and they both had drawn their knives. Chiron was running towards the woods with a group of armed campers.

Alex scrambled to her feet, grabbing Sierra by the wrist, whose bow was slung over her shoulder, and pulling her towards her mom. They gingerly went around the crack before sprinting the rest of the way.

"What is going on?" Alex rasped, breathing heavily from leftover fear and dust.

Her mom shook her head. "I don't know, but something is happening in the woods."

Aunt Piper waved her knife towards the woods. "We have to go! Not many people have their weapons on them so they need us!"

The four of them took off, following the small stream of people that seemed to know where they were going.

"Piper!" her mom called. "Zeus' Fist! They're going the wrong way!"

Alex didn't know what that meant, but Aunt Piper seemed to know as she altered their course, splitting them from the line of people. A few moments later, Alex started to make out a group of ten to fifteen campers crowding around a large pile of rocks. Chiron was in the front. They reached the cluster and started to push their way to the front, Alex's mom leading the charge.

They finally reached Chiron's side, who was staring silently at the rocks.

There were six foot cracks stemming from around the base like branches. Some rocks had fallen from the top and were laying randomly around the structure. Other than that, it seemed insignificant. Alex had probably hid there at some point during a Capture The Flag game but the rocks were so ordinary, she couldn't remember.

However, Chiron, Piper, and Annabeth were staring at the rocks like they could strike at any second.

"This is the epicenter," her mom stated. Chiron nodded solemnly.

They all turned as they heard a goat's bleat coming from behind them. Grover trotted up. "What is going on? The wood nymphs are pissed!" He stopped next to Annabeth and they exchanged hushed whispers.

Alex turned to Sierra. "What is this place?" she whispered.

Sierra took a deep breath, keeping her eyes on the rocks. "Zeus' Fist. It's an entrance to the Labyrinth. Or at least it was. It hasn't been opened in years," she answered.

Alex knew her parents had been in the Labyrinth; her mom must have missed this part of the story.

The ground started to shake again, and they were right on top of the origin. The cracks at the base of the rocks widen and elongated, forcing the demigods to scramble backwards into each other. The trees around them started to sway as their roots pulled from the quaking ground. Alex could hear far off screams from the demigods who went the wrong way. The rocks facing the demigods started to fall, tumbling over each other and towards the group. It all happened too quick so no one had the reaction time or balance to jump out of the way. They all watched as they prepared for the boulders to flatten them.

But it never happened.

The boulders rolled and magically stopped right in front of the group, despite the trembling ground. They plowed against each other, forming a large cloud of dust and debris around the heroes.

Then the earthquake stopped and there was silence as the rocks stopped moving as well. People started to cough and rub their eyes from the brown-red dust.

Finally, the cloud dissipated and everyone stared at the newly formed hole in the side of Zeus' Fist. They slowly moved around the rocks and cracks to get a closer look. Alex stayed towards the front of the group, her curiosity getting the best of her.

There was only darkness past the opening, no clue as to who or what was coming their way.

Then, a silhouette.

There was a collective gasp as everyone scrambled to brandish their weapons. Next to Alex, Sierra nocked an arrow.

"WAIT!" Grover cried. He was pale and shaking. "Hold your fire!"

Everyone lowered their weapons as they watched the silhouette take the shape of a human. It was hunched over and moving slowly.

Finally, the sun's rays hit the figure.

It was a man, with long hair and a beard, grey from the dust. His clothes were tattered, mismatched, and too big for his body. One of his hands was covering his eyes and face, the bright sun seemingly too much for him. The only thing dangerous about him was what was in his other hand.

It was a sword, glowing in the haze like a light. It was three feet long and Celestial Bronze, meaning that the mystery-person must be a demigod. He wasn't holding the blade threateningly. In fact, he held it pointed down next to him, leaving him exposed, but Alex had a feeling he did that on purpose.

The man peaked through his fingers, looking around calmly at the group of demigods. Alex still couldn't make out his face behind his hand. However, Alex could see the man smile brightly before he collapsed to the ground.

No one moved to help him, not even Chiron, who looked stunned. Alex looked around and noticed that Grover had collapsed too. She sheathed her weapon.

"Is no one going to help him?" Alex said into the silence. She looked at her mom, whose mouth was open in shock.

Alex stepped from the group and went towards the man, kneeling next to him. Her midsection burned at the movement, but she knew this was more important than a couple of cuts. She felt for a pulse in his neck.

As soon as she touched him, his eyes flashed opened, startling Alex. His eyes were a vibrant green like the ocean.

 _Wow, his eyes are really green_ , she thought.

He stared straight into her eyes. Alex couldn't look away.

His eyes closed again, but right before his breathing evened, he said, "Annabeth." Then he was out cold again.

Alex was sure she must have misheard him, but when she looked up, everyone was staring at her mom who was still frozen. Her eyes were pooling with tears and they never left the man.

"M-mom?" Alex started to stand. "Do you know him?"

Her mom didn't respond and she started to shake, still staring at the man.

"Mom." Alex took a step towards her. "What is going on?" Alex's stomach was twisting with anxiety and her head hurt from confusion. Older campers were looking between Annabeth, Alex, and the man like a threeway tennis match. "Can _anyone_ tell me what is going on?"

The silence was broken by the sound of Chiron's hooves as he trotted up to the man. He carefully picked him up and laid him across his back. He then turned back to Annabeth, scooping her up, and then taking off back towards camp, leaving everyone behind and Alex more confused than she had ever been.

/

 **I think y'all know what's going on here.**

 **So this story is going to be eight chapters so we're 1/4 of the way through! That was quick, but that's what I wanted. All of these chapters are dense so sorry if things feel like they're moving fast. I'm trying to space things out, but sometimes you can't help it. If you have any questions, please let me know! I'm happy to answer them.**

 **I'm going on vacation in two days so the next chapter might be posted a little later than Monday. Sorry, but like I said, life is getting hectic again. Summer is ending way to quickly, and it's all starting to catch up to me. Also, I need a good book to read for my trip. Any recommendations?**

 **Sorry for any spelling errors, blah blah blah. See ya soon.**


	3. Chapter 3

"Piper, what is going on? Who was that guy?"

They were walking back to camp, and Alex was interrogating the daughter of Aphrodite the entire way. The elder demigod had no answers. She kept shaking her head and saying, "I don't know," like she was in a dream. Her eyebrows were furrowed in confusion and worry, and she was thinking intently.

Alex threw her hands up. "Am I going to get answers from anyone, or am I going to be in the dark forever?"

Piper opened and closed her mouth, unsure of what to say. Then: "I don't know. I'm sorry."

Alex cursed and looked up at the sky as they continued to walk through the woods. She took a deep breath to calm herself. Alex did what any legacy of Athena did in a moment of crisis: she started to think.

The guy was obviously a demigod. Not only did he have a Celestial Bronze sword, he had a powerful aura around him unlike any mortal. His eyes told her that he was a son of Poseidon, but Alex quickly waved that off. The guy seemed to be around his mom's age and no son of Poseidon could survive that long unknown to Camp Half-Blood. Maybe a minor god? Alex knew he wasn't Roman because she saw Greek writing on his sword. She couldn't decipher the text, but it was definitely Greek letters.

And the biggest question of all: how did he know Annabeth's name? Her mom was definitely shocked at his appearance, but maybe she just didn't expect a man to come stumbling out of the Labyrinth? It wasn't exactly an everyday occurrence despite how strange their lives were to begin with.

But that still didn't answer the question of how he knew her mother's name. Alex knew her mom had a lengthy history so maybe the guy knew her mom, but not the other way around? Maybe he fought against her at some point, and learned who she was. Maybe he actually was Roman, but just had a Greek sword?

All of these question swirled through Alex's head. She pulled her hair up into a messy bun; she always thought better when her hair was off her neck.

They arrived at the edge of woods, overlooking the dining pavilion. Hephaestus and Athena campers were already working to repair the damages. Most of the cracks were already fixed, much to Alex's relief.

Alex looked at Piper next to her as they continued to walk towards the pavilion. "Aunt Piper." She made a sound of acknowledgement. "Do _you_ know who the guy is?"

Piper stopped walking and looked at the ground. Her hands wouldn't stop fidgeting. She finally looked up into Alex's questioning eyes. "Alex, I-"

"Piper!"

Travis Stoll of Hermes came running over to them. "I've been looking for you everywhere. Chiron called a Council meeting in the Big House right away. We're waiting on you." He looked between Piper and Alex. "Was I interrupting something?"

As Alex was about to open her mouth to say that yes, he was _absolutely_ interrupting something, Piper shook her vigorously and said quickly, "No! Perfect timing. Let's go Travis." She took Travis by his arm and pulled them away before Alex could retort. Piper looked over her shoulder at Alex as they walked away. "Go back to Cabin Six, Alex. Wait for your mom to come and get you, okay?" She didn't wait for a response, turning forward again to head towards the Big House, leaving Alex still more confused than she had ever been.

/

In Alex's defense, she really did try to wait. She read a chapter from _Harry Potter_ , she ate some ambrosia to heal up her torso, she sang a song, she brushed her hair out, she laid in her bed, only to check the clock and see that ten minutes had passed.

She groaned and threw herself face down on her bed. Her curiosity was eating at her and all she could think about was the man. She wanted to do something, anything, to get her mind off of the afternoon's events. Unfortunately, all of the day's activities were canceled while the leaders of the camp tried to figure out what the hell was going on so that plan was a bust.

Most of the other Athena campers were in the Cabin, working on projects or research, but Alex didn't have the mental energy to join them. Her fingers wouldn't stop twitching, and her mind was moving too fast to sleep and way too fast to focus.

All she wanted to do was be in that meeting.

Alex would blame her next move on her genetics, since she got her crippling curiosity from her mom and her irrepressible impulsivity from her dad.

She stood abruptly from her bed and left the cabin, slamming the door behind her. Her hair blew in the afternoon breeze as she marched to the Big House.

One side of her brain was saying that this was a bad idea, and that she should just wait for the answers. The other side, which was speaking louder in that moment, was saying that Alex deserved answers after all the shit she has gone through.

She stomped up the steps, ignoring Argus who was reading a book on a rocking chair. His eyes glanced up at her, but quickly went straight back down to his book when he saw her anger. Opening the front door, Alex made a beeline for the Council room. She could hear some objections from people in the room, but there was no stopping her at this point. She quickly knocked on the door to signal her arrival and barged in before anyone could stop her.

All eyes in the room fell on her, and Alex started to have second thoughts on her decision. Chiron's mouth was open, undoubtedly in the middle of talking before her sudden intrusion. The room was filled with all of the elder campers, who were all around her mom's age: Piper, Travis, Grover (looking healthy but tired), Clarisse, Connor Stoll, Will Solace, Nico DiAngelo, Chris Rodriguez, and of course, Annabeth. They all stared at her, except her mom, who wouldn't meet her eyes.

Alex cleared her throat and stood taller. "I want answers," she demanded, much bolder than she felt. "I don't want to be kept in the dark. Whatever is going on, it involves my mother so I deserve to know."

Slowly, all eyes shifted from one Jackson to the other.

Something was definitely not right; her mom had obviously been crying, she looked disheveled, and she was _sitting_. She never sat at meetings like this.

But she looked… happy, even relieved. Her eyes were shining, her shoulders looked relaxed, she was grinning, which made Alex even more confused.

Pushing back from the ping pong table, she stood and walked to her daughter's side. Taking Alex by the shoulder, she wordlessly started to pull her daughter from the room.

Alex looked back confusedly at the table to see everyone looking happily at her. Piper and Grover were both smiling and dabbing their eyes with tissues. Even Clarisse gave her a warm grin from under Chris' arm.

Her mother led Alex towards the infirmary and they walked through the doorway into the pristine room. It was empty except for a single person in the middle cot. Alex also noticed immediately that the lights in the room were dimmed. There was only one child of Apollo on duty and Alex was relieved that it was Sierra. She smiled at the two, her eyes lingering on Alex for an extra second before going back to her work. She was writing down the patient's vitals onto a clipboard. Quickly done, she excused herself and left the infirmary. Alex tried to smile at her, but it probably came out more like a grimace. She quickly turned her attention back to the patient in the middle of the room.

Alex and her mom moved closer, and Alex realized that it was the man. His beard had been shaved off and his black hair had been cut down to a long buzz cut, giving him a completely different appearance. His skin was also clean, no longer brown, red, and grey, but milky pale in the dull light. Paler than a child of Hades. If he were to stand on the beach for even a minute, he would definitely get sunburned.

He didn't appear too injured, most of his wounds healed by ambrosia and nectar. He had a few visible bandages on his upper body, but nothing life threatening. He was sleeping peacefully, and his thin face was relaxed.

They sat down on either side of the man on chairs. Alex looked at her mom expectantly.

"So?" she asked quietly.

Annabeth looked at her daughter. "Alex, what do you remember about your father?"

Alex furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. "Why are we talking about him?" She shook her head. "Mom, this doesn't have to be some family-bonding moment. I just want to know who this man is."

Annabeth signed and looked at the ceiling like she was saying a silent prayer. "This man is a son of Poseidon, Alex. He's been missing for years, searching for us." She was dropping clues, obviously wanting her daughter to put the pieces together.

Alex froze. _Son of Poseidon, went missing shortly after her dad did when everyone was going on rescue missions, searching on behalf of their family._

"Holy shit," she said, looking at the man, "Dad had a brother?"

Annabeth closed her eyes, slightly disappointed in her daughter's detective skills. She looked at the man in front of her, and reached out and gripped his hand. "Gods, you are as obtuse as your father sometimes," she said, never taking her eyes off of him.

Alex looked between her mother and the man.

Oh.

 _Oh_.

Alex's eyes widened and her stomach flipped. "Wait…what?" Her head was hurting.

Annabeth chuckled at her daughter's expense. "Alex, I don't know how or why, but this is your dad."

Bewildered, Alex looked at her _father_.

She didn't know what to expect. Fireworks? Balloons? Confetti? What do you do when the being behind half of your DNA just suddenly drops back into your life after twelve years of being dead? Be scared that a ghost was in front of her or cry like a baby into his arms?

Alex's posture relaxed and she perused the man, trying to find some familiarity. Their hair was the same color. Their mouths and lips were similar. That's all Alex could notice.

"Okay," she said evenly.

Annabeth looked at her daughter curiously. "'Okay?' That's it?"

Alex shrugged her shoulders and pulled her eyes away from her father to look down at her lap.

This man in front of her wasn't her dad.

In Alex's mind, that title belonged to her Uncle Grover. In fact, when she was younger, she often introduced him as such to her friends when he would pick her up from school. Of course, he would always correct her in the car, but she would simply give him an adorable smile before doing the same thing the next day.

But can you blame her? Grover was there when she first rode her bike, on her first airplane trip to San Francisco when she was six, at her first swim competition. He danced with her at every Daddy-Daughter Dance, went to every parent-teacher conference when her mother couldn't attend. He held her as she cried for her mom who was on yet another quest to find her father. He held her as she cried in her room after a homophobic slur was hurled at her at school for the first time and her mom was at Camp Jupiter for business. He comforted her when she admitted to not remembering her father.

Grover was _there_ when her mother couldn't be, and Alex would forever be grateful for his place in her life. Someone's blood did not have to match in order to be family.

The man in front of her was Percy Jackson the hero, who happened to also share her DNA. When Alex thought of the word dad, he did not come to mind. Grover, and even Chiron, Leo, the Stolls, Will, and Nico all came to mind. Not Percy Jackson.

He was her father by blood, but not yet her dad.

/

Alex did not sleep well that night. She tossed and turned for hours before finally giving up, sitting up in her bed. She checked her bedside clock; the bright red _3:27 AM_ mocked her.

The cabin was quiet, most people exhausted from the day's events. Even if someone was up and saw Alex moving around, they were not going to say anything. People avoided her for the rest of the day like she had the plague. Alex was known to have a quick temper when she was stressed so no one wanted to cross her.

Taking a deep breath, Alex decided to go to the one place that always eased her mind. Slipping on the Yankees hat that her mom gifted her on her thirteenth birthday, she quietly left the cabin. She felt her shoulders relax slightly, relishing in that fact that this was the first time all day that no one would be looking at her.

Directing her path towards Cabin Three, Alex kept her head and eyes down in order to avoid stepping on something that would alert the harpies to her presence. Glancing over her shoulder to check for any onlookers, she quickly opened the door and slid into the cabin.

But she was not alone.

He was sitting on one of the bunks, facing the door. He had a Camp necklace in his hands, running his fingers over the countless amount of decorated beads. His deathly pale skin stood out against the darkness of the room. His head snapped up at the movement of the door, and his eyes scanned over her invisible form and the area around her.

"Take the hat off," he said, his voice soft.

Alex felt stupid. This was a bad idea. She should just turn around and leave, play dumb and say it was some Hecate kid trying to see the legendary Percy Jackson with their own eyes.

"Please."

Alex paused but felt her resolve crumble, and she slowly pulled the hat from her head, revealing her identity to her father. He may not have seen her in twelve years, but Alex knew he recognized his little girl grown up.

He stood but remained where he was.

"What are you doing here?" Alex asked with more anger than she thought she had.

"Couldn't sleep." He tilted his head at her slightly. "What are you doing here?"

"Couldn't sleep," she said. She felt defensive, like she got caught with her hand in the cookie jar.

They fell into a moment of silence, and suddenly Alex was overwhelmed with emotions and questions for the man in front of her. Her mind was racing and she felt her heart rate pick up.

She could have asked a million questions, but the first to fall from her mouth was, "Why did you go on that quest?"

She regretted the harshness of the question as soon as she said it, but it was at the forefront of her mind. It was the question she had wanted to ask as soon as she fully understood what occurred that day twelve years ago, the last time she saw him. Why would he just leave her and her mother behind when he knew the danger of taking the quest?

He winced, like he knew the question was coming. He took a step towards her.

"It's not that simple. I had to-" he started.

"No!" Alex cried out. "You didn't _have_ to do anything. The only obligation you had was your family and _you_ left us behind!" Alex wanted to hurt him, for him to feel all of the pain and suffering that her mother and her went through for the past twelve years because of him.

"I had to protect my family!" he retorted. He sounded tired. "I decided to put myself in danger to _protect_ you two. And I would do it over and over again if it meant keeping you safe." He took a breath. His voice was quiet. "Someday you will understand. I didn't want to leave, but I had to." His voice broke slightly. "The thought of losing you and your mother is more terrifying than any form of death."

"Twelve years." Alex was crying. "You were gone for twelve years."

He took another step forward. "Tartarus wasn't really receptive to the fact that I had a wife and kid waiting for me at home." He stopped in front of her, looking at her face, still seeing his little girl from all those years ago. "I never stopped trying to get out. The punishments…" he winced, remembering the countless days of pain and torture. "They couldn't stop me. I needed to see my family again." He looked down at his feet. "Look, I know I've missed a lot. I understand your resentment. I know this isn't going to be as easy as I want it to be, becoming a family again-" he looked up "-but all I ask is that you understand. Understand that we are _all_ feeling the effects of the past twelve years. Mentally and physically. Can you do that?"

Alex remained silent, tears continuing to fall.

 _This can't be real._

He tentatively brought his right hand up, and he cupped her cheek to wipe her away her tears. His hand, more rough than she remembered, sparked a million memories in head. Wiping her tears when she fell at the playground, playing in the living room as he blew raspberries on her cheek, kissing her forehead when she had a nightmare. The ocean mixed with lavender filled her senses and she knew.

She collapsed into his arms and he caught her, holding his daughter tight.

Her father was home.

 **/**

 **Happy 2019. See y'all in six months.**


	4. Chapter 4 - Part One

With the help of the Apollo campers, Percy slowly started to regain his weight and strength over the course of the next few weeks. His pale skin turned from ghostly white to red (sunscreen couldn't even help him) to a light tan, making his time in the sun a little more comfortable. His eyes, adapted to the darkness of the underground, were still sensitive to the sun, but he no longer needed to wear sunglasses on a cloudy day. He also no longer needed to use a cane to walk, which was amazing considering the damage done to his legs after walking miles on broken bones. His clothes were fitting him better every day as he readily sent food to the deep abyss of his stomach. He was going to need to go up a size in clothes soon, his face no longer appearing as gaunt. In the Apollo camper's opinions, he was having a near perfect recovery considering what he had gone through.

However, the trauma Percy had experienced was still evident, no matter how much he tried to pretend it wasn't. The tanning of his skin showed how he was speckled with pale white scars. He often sought shade after being in the sun for a while as not even sunglasses could stop the headaches he would get. Loud noises left him shaken. And only him and Annabeth knew just how bad his sleeping problems were.

However, the biggest change that occurred with the return of Alex's father was her mother. While Percy was still recovering in the infirmary during his first week back, stricken with illness since his immune system was not used to the germs of camp, her mother never left his side. She missed Council meetings, training sessions, and even Capture the Flag. It was uncharacteristic of her, of course, but Alex knew this was the side of her mother she had missed for twelve years. For so long, discipline and punctuality was the foundation of Annabeth's teachings to her daughter, of which Annabeth always exemplified to the greatest degree.

Now, Alex had felt something in her mother change.

In simple terms, her mom did not seem to care. When Alex had brought up her mother's absences to her over dinner, she simply shrugged and said, "It's not important right now."

Alex felt like she was talking to a new person when she said that.

But, despite all of these changes, Alex was really happy for her mom.

She smiled more. Her already intimidating eyes were not as hard. She did not seem as tired as she usually was at night. She even looked younger.

Alex had spotted the two of them one day sitting on the Big House's porch.

 _Alex was walking from a campfire when she saw them. It was nighttime, but a full moon cast enough light to make them visible._

 _They were sitting on a couch on the porch. Her father had a blanket around his shoulders, still too thin to fight off the cold. He was without sunglasses, the night giving him some relief. He was staring up at the night sky, likely for the first time since he had gotten back. He had finally gotten permission from the Apollo campers to leave the Big House that morning, but the sun made it difficult for him to leave during the day._

 _Her mother was next to him. Her head was on his shoulder, her eyes closed in peaceful rest. She was not asleep, as her father would occasionally whisper something to her, and she would smile and laugh before returning to their tranquility._

 _Their hands were clasped tightly together between them._

 _Alex felt like she had gone back in time when watching the calm scene. Her mother looked like a teenager again, not the woman who had gone through years of pain and suffering. Her father, while still in the infancy of his recovery, seemed relaxed and the hard lines of his gaunt frame were not apparent in the moonlight. He, despite everything he had gone through, looked younger as well._

That night, Alex saw a new side of her mother, one that was free from her demons. While she had lots to learn about her father, she would be forever grateful for the change he sparked in her mother.

/

One morning, Alex was heading to the Big House to ask her mother a question only to find her father sitting on the porch. He seemed to be in deep thought (which, according to Annabeth, did not occur often), but he perked up when she came into view. He stood, sunglasses on, when she walked up the stairs.

He cleared his throat. "I need to stretch my legs." He nodded towards the strawberry fields. "Come with me?"

Figuring her question could wait, she nodded, and they headed off towards the fields.

The walk over was quiet. Alex figured he had a topic in mind, so she decided to let him speak first. He led her to an area of the fields that was out of earshot of any Demeter kids who were tending to the strawberries. He sat down on the grass, with surprising ease, and plucked a fresh strawberry from a bush.

"I think it's time we talked, without your mom listening," he said, "I love her, but she can be scary when I say dumb stuff."

Alex sat down across from him. She started playing with the grass, a nervous fidget she had. "Well, what do you want to know? My favorite color is blue, unsurprisingly. I don't like peanut butter. Oh, I can solve a Rubik's Cube," she said, not making eye contact with him. While they had talked more since the reveal, it was still nerve-wracking to be with him one-on-one.

He let out a chuckle at her obvious sarcasm, knowing where it came from. "I want to know what has happened in the past twelve years-" He took a deep breath. "-what I've missed."

She finally looked up at him. He was looking intently at her, his eyebrows scrunched together.

 _Well shit, here we go_.

She ran a hand through her hair, which was down and blowing in a gentle breeze.

She was not going to lie. She was not going to hide anything. He deserved to know _everything_. Hiding the truth would hurt him more than revealing it.

She sighed. "Well, get comfortable because this will take a while."

/

She started from the beginning, what she remembered from the day he left. She talked about that month where they had no idea where he or Able was, and if they were ever going to return, the talk she had with Grover once Able did finally return.

The first year was the hardest. Alex felt like she didn't have a mother. Annabeth was constantly either on a quest to find Percy or trying to get approval for another. She barely ate or slept, much less gave time to her daughter. Her free time was spent looking at maps or training.

Their little time together was usually spent sleeping, cuddled up together in the Poseidon cabin. However, little Alex usually woke up alone, waiting for Grover or Juniper to bring her to breakfast.

Her mother had also been getting physically ill often, running to the bathroom while they were sleeping. Little Alex attributed it to her missing dad, but one day she woke up to her mother crying out in pain and she knew it was much worse than her young mind could imagine.

That was the day Alex learned what a miscarriage.

Percy looked lost when she told him this, but he remained silent.

She told him how her mother somehow convinced Chiron to let her continue her quests. Week after week, she was somewhere else in the world, searching for any sign of him. During her last quest, her reckless acts caught up to her.

"Finally, Aunt Thalia dragged her half-dead body into Camp. She had been ambushed by a minor god, and nearly killed. Aunt Thalia and the Hunters had been tracking her movements because she knew Mom didn't have any backup. When Mom didn't come out, they went in. They had to resuscitate her before they headed back to Camp," Alex said. "Chiron finally had enough and banned her from taking part in anymore quests. She tried to sneak out that night, half of her body covered in bandages. She would have done it too, had she not tried to hide in the one tree a look-out camper was perched in." Alex shook her head. "Thalia had enough with her. I wasn't allowed to go into the Poseidon cabin that night. There was a lot of yelling coming from it. Next day, mom slept for sixteen hours straight, moved into the Athena Cabin, and she never left for a quest again."

"Thalia saved her life," her dad said softly.

Alex nodded.

"After that point, she seemed to realize that she had a kid and a camp to take care of so she put all of her energy into being a mom and leader. Things got better between us, we moved out of camp into an apartment in New York City near Grandma, Mom got a real job as an architect, and I started kindergarten the next year. Ever since then, we spend the school year in NYC and the summers here." Alex paused before continuing. "Mom has obviously gotten better, but there was always something missing, like a part of her wasn't there. Every milestone we had was somber because she was always thinking about how _you_ were missing it." She looked at her dad. "Then you decided to pop out of a rock, and now we're here."

He chuckled at her attempt to lighten the mood, but she could tell her story drained him. He obviously knew he caused his family lots of pain over the years, but to hear it can be overwhelming.

"No wonder your mom wouldn't tell me," he finally said. He shook his head in disbelief. "I don't know what I would have done if I were her."

Alex spoke softly. "That's why the gods sent you on the quest. They knew you would be strong enough to survive, and she would be wise enough to wait. All we needed was time."

Her father smiled at her. "Damn, you definitely got the wisdom genes from your mom." He suddenly straightened and winced in pain. "Maybe, I'm not quite ready for sitting this long on the ground yet."

Alex started to stand and said, "You should get some rest. Let's head back before mom worries."

She helped him stand, and they started a slow trek back to the Big House. The more steps he took, the more evident his limp became, no matter how much he tried to hide it.

"It usually doesn't hurt this bad, this quick." He sounded out of breath. "Maybe we can grab some chairs next time we want to talk."

Alex took hold of his free arm to help him and teased, "Come on, old man. Don't give up on me yet."

He scoffed, muttering the insult under his breath. "I should ground you for that."

They were just a few yards from the porch when the horn sounded.

Every camper knows that the horn signals company. There was an unspoken rule of camp, however, that if sounds of battle are not heard within thirty seconds of the horn, that usually means the visitors are friendly. As a result, everyone holds their breath and waits, listening, counting the seconds as they go by. Alex and Percy looked at each other, thinking the same thing. They counted in their heads.

At the 27th second, a distant roar could be heard, and the camp suddenly sprang into action. Armed campers bolted to the sounds while others rushed to their cabins to find their weapons. Alex and Percy stumbled the rest of the way to the porch stairs, and she helped him sit.

Alex swayed on her feet, unsure of where to go. Part of her wanted to rush to the battle, but another part knew she should protect her father.

Percy seemed to understand the look on her face. He pulled a pen from his pants pocket.

 _Riptide_. Alex had only heard stories of the famed sword.

"Go," he said, "I'll be okay. Find your mother."

Alex nodded and took off towards the Athena Cabin since she was not armed. Dashing into the cabin, she nearly knocked over her mother who was just leaving. She had a chest plate on and her knife in hand.

"Get your armor on and stay behind me," she commanded.

Alex quickly slipped her chest plate and bracers on, before grabbing her own knife and following her mom out the door. At this point, most campers were armed and heading towards the danger, which seemed to be ongoing. Alex could see the Big House in the distance as she ran, praying that her father would remain safe.

As they got closer, the sounds of battle got louder. They ran past one camper who was holding a bloody t-shirt to a head wound he had.

"The labyrinth is open!" he yelled.

Alex heard her mom curse under her breath.

Finally, the fighting and Zeus' Fist came into view. A fleet of armed dracaenae were using spears and shields to attack the demigods. While the campers were not losing the battle, it certainly was not an easy one. Alex noticed the monster's weapons and armor strangely appeared almost new and unused, making it difficult for the campers to find an obvious weakness. However, she tucked this observation away as her mother and her jumped into battle.

The two fought graciously together, all of their training paying off. When one held the defensive, the other attacked. When one found a vulnerability, the other seemed to know without a second thought. If one made a mistake (usually Alex, but she wouldn't admit it), the other pulled them out of it. The duo fought like they came from the same brain.

Finally, the last standing dracaenae realized her position. She hissed at the demigods and swiped a spear at them to get space. Her poison green eyes scanned the crowd before falling directly onto Alex. She felt paralyzed.

"Possseidon blood is here," she said, almost happily. She quickly turned and went back into the cave of the Labyrinth, getting lost in the darkness.

All of the campers stood in silence at the monster's words, unable to look at Alex for the second time at Zeus' Fist.

Alex turned to say something to her mom, only to find her already talking to Chiron. They were talking in hushed whispers.

"Mom." Her voice came out as a squeak. Clearing her throat, she tried again. " _Mom._ "

The two stopped to look at Alex. She couldn't read her mother's expression.

"Apollo Cabin, tend to the wounded. Ares Cabin, check the weapons stock at the armory and report back to the Council. Hephaestus and Athena, I want motion sensors deployed by the Fist and around the perimeter of camp by the end of the hour, so we know if anything tries to come back, and report to me when it is finished. I want a guard unit patrolling this area at all times. Post lookouts on the perimeter of camp so every single inch can be seen by a camper." Annabeth broke eye contact to look around at the remaining campers. "At this moment, this is purely precautionary. However, remain alert and armed. If you see anything unusual, report it. Get to work."

Her mother's commanding words sent all of the campers into action, sparking an organized chaos.

Alex managed to reach her mother despite it. "What is going on?" she asked.

Annabeth sheathed her knife and shook her head. "I don't know yet."

/

That night, the motion sensor alarms blared throughout Camp, sending campers flying out of their beds and straight towards the woods. If it weren't for the situation, the sight of an Ares camper in rubber duck pajamas and armor would have had the camp rolling in laughter.

This time, it was hell hounds.

Alex fought side by side with an Ares camper, who she ended up having to tend to after the Ares kid got swiped by claws to the abdomen. The infirmary continued to fill.

The next evening, during dinner, it was a group of cyclops. With firebombs, they killed their first victim: a fifteen year-old from Hermes. She was honored that night after the fight with a hero's burial. Alex spent the night comforting a distraught Sierra, who was friends with the fallen. Alex heard her parents arguing that night about "Poseidon's blood."

The day after that, a Wednesday, was a day of peace which almost felt worse than a day of battle. Daily activities had been cancelled by that point, so most campers who were not on guard remained tense in their cabins, waiting for the horn that would not come. Alex felt that even the smallest of sudden sounds was enough to set her off. She tried to remain by Sierra's side the whole day, but even Sierra eventually pushed her away for a little bit of peace after she couldn't handle Alex's constant fidgeting. That night, Alex overheard her parents arguing about a quest.

That Thursday morning, Alex strapped her knife to her thigh and set off to the Poseidon Cabin early, knowing her mother would already be there. Her father had just started sleeping there the week prior, but her mother had yet to move back in.

Sure enough, as soon as Alex walked up to the cabin, she could hear her parents' muffled talking from behind the door. She walked around the corner of the cabin to better hide herself from those passing by and crouched near a window. While closed, she could still clearly hear them talking.

Her father sounded urgent. "Annabeth, you know we need to send a quest. They will keep coming until the prophecy is completed, or they kill Alex or I. We both know one of those options is off the table."

"I can't send you back in there, Percy," her mother paused before speaking so quietly that Alex could barely hear it. "I can't make that mistake again."

Then, the peace ended with a horn, and they were back into battle again. While Percy was still sidelined with recovery, Alex and Annabeth ran straight to the Fist.

That day was pit scorpions. The next, a hydra. Then, kampês, telekhines, and more.

For nine days straight, the demigods fought battle after battle. The infirmary spread to the entirety of the Big House, and then some. Hephaestus and Ares campers worked around the clock to build new weapons and armor. Apollo campers were ordered to work on six-hour shifts after they started to pass out from exhaustion.

Day after day, Alex saw her mom's face grow more and more stressed. She had the feeling her mother knew exactly what was going on.

/

 **This chapter came out in one day like word vomit. It's super long so I decided to split it in half. Part Two will be out soon. Sorry for spelling errors, and all that. See y'all soon.**


	5. Chapter 4 - Part Two

Over the course of the nine days, thirty-one campers died. Every night ended with the burnings of shrouds. Alex herself buried eleven close friends. Night after night, it was someone else, some other memories of friendship lost during battle.

For so long, she wanted nothing more than to prove herself on the battlefield, to live up to her parent's legacy. And now that she was here, she wanted nothing but to go back in time and punch herself in the head for being stupid and arrogant. She was quickly learning that battle was not forgiving. There were no re-do's, no water breaks, and no warmups. Fear creates mistakes, and mistakes meant that someone got hurt.

Alex saw fearlessness every battle in her mother, who worked precisely and dangerously. She made no mistakes, decades of training and experience showing up. She was once everything Alex wanted to be in a warrior, but now she understood why her parents winced when she said she wanted to see battle.

They had suffered for _years_ to become the fighters they are today. Alex could never answer the question on why they would subject themselves to this, year after year.

Until, she could.

Ten days after the first attack, Alex and Sierra were on patrol at the Fist. With twenty other demigods on guard, it would be hard for _most_ monsters to get a jump on the campers.

Drakons are not like most monsters.

The first motion sensor to go off was on the east side of Camp, far away from the Fist. Right as back up campers arrived to secure the scene, a motion sensor went off on the north side of Camp, near the Sound. As campers flooded to that area, a third sensor went off on the northwest corner of Camp.

By that third alarm, Alex knew exactly what was coming, but it was far too late to make a difference. Right as she called her peers into a defensive position, the motion sensor covering the area right under their feet went off. There was a moment of stillness as the alarm blared.

Then, the Fist exploded.

The drakon shot out of the now-large-enough opening in the rocks. It threw its head from side-to-side, spewing liquid from its mouth.

A few feet from Alex, a camper was hit with the liquid in the leg. He immediately started to scream in pain. From what she could see, his pants were sizzling and dissolving. She looked away when it reached his skin.

"Acid!" Alex yelled, "Everyone get cover!"

Thankfully, the exploded Fist had blasted large rocks across the battlefield, making it easy to find cover. She scrambled to get behind a rock as more acid flew over her head. Glancing at the nearby campers who had also gone for cover, she spotted Sierra. She poked her head over the rock to see that the drakon was occupied with some Ares campers before dashing over to Sierra. She crouched next to Sierra behind a boulder.

"We need to find a chink in the armor, but-" Alex started.

"-we're not going to find it running straight at the thing," Sierra finished. "We need to go around."

Alex turned to poke her head above the rock again, checking the flanks. She saw a flash of blond hair, realizing her mother had already come to the same plan. Alex crouched back down.

"Mom is already one step ahead of us. I'm going to catch up with her. Cover me?" Alex said.

Sierra grinned and nocked an arrow in her bow. "It would be my greatest honor. Come back to me, alive preferably."

Alex ignored the butterflies in her stomach and took off down the left flank. She stayed inside the tree line so she would be harder to spot, and the trees could protect her from rogue acid. She slowed her pace once she got behind the drakon's sightline. She could see her mother just a few yards from the drakon's body.

Alex looked back at the battlefield. Some Apollo campers were dragging the wounded out of the line of fire while others were scattered around the battlefield with their bows. Sierra was sending arrows at the drakon to keep it occupied. Ares campers were fighting the monster in close quarters combat. They seemed to be making up the majority of those injured, but it was amazing that any of them were still alive.

Focusing back to what was in front of her, Alex saw her mom creeping up the side of the drakon towards the head, careful to not get crushed when it moved. She had a sword in hand instead of her usual knife. Alex waved her arms above her head, and her mom finally noticed her and waved her over.

"I should have known you would have had the same plan," her mom said once Alex reached her. "A knife isn't long enough to penetrate its armor-"

They scrambled to the side when the drakon suddenly jumped to its right. Fortunately, the drakon was only attacking with its head. Had it chosen to move, it could have destroyed half of Camp by that point, but monsters are not known for being the smartest.

Her mom continued. "-so I'll go in for the kill. You stay down here and protect yourself."

"What? No!" Alex shook her head. "I can-"

"No, Alex. I will call for you if I need help. Stay in the tree line," she demanded before climbing up the armored scales of the drakon.

Alex quickly retreated to the tree line, knowing better than to argue with her mother amid battle.

Knife in hand, Alex waited. She watched her mother scale the side of the drakon, standing once she reached the top. The drakon was too occupied with the campers to notice the stumbling human on top of it. Her mother stayed low, moving slowly and with caution. Despite the drakon's sudden movements, her mother remained balanced on the monster's back.

Reaching the base of the drakon's head, her mother grabbed the sword with both hands and thrust it straight down through the scales. The drakon immediately reared back, obviously not enjoying the visitor on its back anymore.

As it started to flail, Alex could see her mother was in trouble. Her foot appeared to be caught in the scales. While she was still on her feet, trying to get free, Alex knew it wouldn't be long before her mother would be flying around like a rag doll with her foot caught.

 _So much for a call_.

Alex took off, running perpendicular towards its head.

She wasn't going to be fast enough. Her mother was starting to teeter. And even if she did reach the drakon, what was she going to do?

Her body reacted before her mind. She changed her grip on the knife, holding it next to her ear. The drakon's head was facing to her right, it's eye a small target. She would have to be perfect.

 _Please, Apollo, let me hit this._

She threw the knife. It flew blade over handle.

Her throw was off. The blade was going to hit to the left of the eye, where it would hit the armored scales uselessly. Alex's stomach dropped.

Then, by the gods, the drakon turned its head towards Alex. The new angle was perfect. The blade embedded itself straight into the pupil, likely blinding the drakon's one eye.

But if the monster felt pain, it did not show it.

It slowly turned until it was completely facing Alex. Arrows and swords continued to hit the beast, but it did not notice. It was fixated on Alex.

She made the mistake of looking at its good eye. Her body immediately froze, the eyes of drakons causing paralysis. She would have to watch as the drakon killed her.

It slowly moved closer to her. The acid in its mouth was starting to bubble, dissolving the armor around its jaws. Its good eye was staring at her despite the other chaos of the battlefield.

Her mom was still desperately trying to pull her foot free, looking at her daughter in horror, unable to help. Her sword was missing. She was yelling Alex's name, but Alex couldn't respond. She could only watch.

The drakon was only a few yards away. It opened its mouth to eat her, maybe hit her with acid. Alex would never find out.

At the same moment, a single arrow went straight down the throat of the drakon. The monster shut its jaws in surprise. There was a low boom as the concussion arrow exploded inside of it. It reared back, finally in pain, throwing its head up high enough to look over a two-story building.

Alex felt a hand on her upper arm. The spell was broken, and she could finally move, but her muscles still felt like jello. She blindly followed the hand as it dragged her backwards away from where she was. She watched in horror as the drakon's massive head started to fall towards them, like a shoe stepping on a bug.

At the last second, the mysterious hands shoved her out of the landing zone of the head and into safety. She fell like a sack of potatoes, her legs refusing to work.

The drakon slammed its head onto the ground, causing a large plume of dirt and dust to rise. Only its green eyes were visible in the cloud. It turned its attention back to the rows of campers who were reorganized and resupplied.

More concussion arrows came flying in, as well as fire and sonic arrows. The quick and hard work of the Hephaestus cabin was paying off, giving the campers a second life. The drakon was starting to struggle under the new firepower.

The drakon opened its mouth to spew more acid only for countless arrows to fly into its mouth. Its jaws snapped shut again. When the arrows exploded, the drakon finally did as well, covering the fighting campers in yellow dust. The shimmering air was mortifyingly beautiful.

A whimper of pain shook Alex from her stupor.

There, lying on her stomach, was Sierra. She was covered in yellow dust but there were tear tracks on her face despite it.

She was the one who saved Alex.

Alex called out her name and rushed over to her. She immediately noticed Sierra's feet.

"It-It landed on my feet," Sierra stammered out. "I c-can't feel anything. How bad is it?"

Alex felt her stomach flip. "Uh, it's not that bad. Don't worry."

It _was_ bad.

The only thing holding Sierra's feet together was her boots. Her feet were obviously dislocated, both pointing in unnatural angles away from her body. The growing red spots on her boots told Alex that each foot had at least one compound fracture.

"Just don't move, okay? You're fine, but I'm going to get help." Trying to keep her voice steady, she continued, "Do not look at your legs."

Sierra scoffed, despite her pain. "Not bad, my ass. Hurry please."

Alex ran off, calling for a medic. She stopped at every tent and makeshift infirmary, but every medic was occupied. The casualties from this attack were terribly extraordinary. She couldn't even spot Chiron. Alex looked back to Sierra, only to see her best friend looking too pale. Her boots were redder than brown.

She was running out of time.

Running over to her, Alex called out to her, "Sierra, you have to get onto my back."

"How?" Sierra pleaded.

"Roll over. And _don't look._ " Alex helped her roll over, grimacing when Sierra screamed out in pain. She noticed Sierra's eyes glance down.

"Holy fuck."

"I'm going to put you on my back and we're going straight to the Big House. I need you stay calm and keep your heart rate as low as possible," Alex demanded.

"Y-yeah, I'm trying."

Crouching down, Alex positioned Sierra on her back in a fireman's carry as best she could before standing. While Sierra was on the lighter side, Alex grunted under the weight. What felt like hours of fighting was finally catching up to her.

But Sierra was in danger.

Alex took off towards the Big House, Sierra bouncing over her shoulders with every step. Alex could hear her crying out in pain in her ear, but there was no other way. Alex's legs had gone numb with the fear of losing her best friend.

Finally, after an eternity, the Big House came into view. There were tents and cots set up on the wrapping porch and on the surrounding grass.

Alex started to yell, "Help! She needs help! Please!"

Multiple campers came running over. "What's wrong?" one asked.

"Her feet. She can't stand," Alex replied, finally coming to a stop.

"A-Alex, I n-need…" Sierra stuttered. She was losing consciousness.

"Get her inside. We're almost out of nectar and ambrosia so we set up a surgery table in the Council Room," another camper, Rachel, said.

The two other Apollo campers helped Alex get Sierra into the house and into the Council Room. The ping pong table had been swapped out for a metal table and surgical tools.

Alex stepped back to fully look at Sierra since their dash over, while the medics started their work. She was white as a ghost and her lips her blue. Her boots and the tucked-in-pants around the boots were almost completely soaked with blood. She was trying to talk as she drifted in and out of consciousness, but an oxygen mask made her incoherent.

Alex knelt next to the table and grasped Sierra's hand. "Sierra, can you hear me?"

Sierra slowly looked over at Alex through half-closed eyes. She was, again, saying something but Alex couldn't hear over the chaos of the medical staff.

"I need you to stay alive, Sierra, please. Don't leave me yet, please!" Alex pleaded.

Suddenly, Chiron walked through the door, a box of medical supplies in hand. "Alex, you have to leave right now." He set down the box and put a surgical mask over his face.

Alex felt hands grabbed her shoulders, pulling her up and basically carrying her out of the room.

"Don't let anything happen to her, Chiron!" Alex cried out, feeling helpless. She was dropped outside the door and it was slammed shut.

/

Alex does not know exactly when her parents showed up. She must have been sitting alone in the Big House common area for hours. She had been offered food and water many times, only to reject it each time. Word had spread about Sierra's gruesome injury, and knowing their strong relationship, people eventually just left Alex alone.

Her mother was on crutches, nursing a broken ankle from her ride on the back of the drakon. She was expected to be back on her feet within a few days, thanks to the power of ambrosia. Her father was fine, obviously, but worried for both his wife and daughter. The three were sitting on a couch, Percy and Annabeth on either side of their daughter.

"Have you heard anything yet?" her dad asked gently.

Alex simply shook her head. "I don't know how long it has been." Her voice was hoarse from crying.

The family sat in silence for hours. Annabeth finally convinced her daughter to eat and drink for the first time all day. Other than that, they waited.

Finally, around seven o'clock in the evening and eight hours after the attack, the door opened, and Chiron walked out. He was obviously tired, and his shirt was bloodied.

Percy stood up first. He called out to Chiron, who walked over.

"She's stable. We managed to put her foot back together manually through surgery. The ambrosia should help the fusion of the bones," Chiron said, "However, her feet were basically shattered. We did everything we can, but she still might never walk without assistance again. Only time and physical therapy will tell." He looked at Alex. "She is sleeping right now, and I suggest that you do the same. Tomorrow will only bring another battle, and you should be well-rested and ready to fight. Our number of experienced and talented fighters is slowly diminishing." He looked at Percy and Annabeth. "We have lost contact with the gods and Camp Jupiter. It seems like something is blocking our communication from reaching them. The Empire State Building has been closed for maintenance so we cannot reach the gods for aid. We sent a team to California, but I'm afraid the help will not come fast enough."

"We're alone," her dad summarized.

Chiron nodded. "We've called in former campers for support, so be ready to see some old faces in the coming days. We will have a Council meeting tomorrow at noon, as long as no attacks occur at that time."

Annabeth nodded. Chiron said his goodbyes and departed to help others.

Alex sat deep in thought, only coming to when her parents encouraged her to return with them to the Poseidon Cabin for some peace and quiet. She followed behind them, still thinking.

When they finally arrived, her mother fell asleep almost immediately as her aging body was not used to the workload like it used to be. Alex laid awake in the bunk bed next to her parents, unable to sleep. Images of Sierra hurt flashed through her head every time she closed her eyes.

Around 2:00 AM, Alex heard movement from the other bed. She saw her dad sit up in the corner of her eye. He was breathing heavy and he rubbed his face tiredly. He stood and went to the bathroom, closing the door. Alex could hear him splashing water on his face.

When he came out, he was greeted by his daughter also sitting up in her bed.

She had been doing a lot of thinking since the attack, and she had come to an understanding. She kept her voice quiet.

"I understand why you went on the quest."

/

They ended up on the beach when Percy suggested they go for a walk so they would not wake Annabeth. He left a note so if she woke so she knew they went out. They sat on some boulders near the tree line.

Her father started. "I hoped you would never have to understand. But with Sierra…" He trailed off.

Alex stared at the waves, which always calmed her. "When she was lying on the table, I thought-" her voice gave out as her eyes filled with tears. She took a shaky breath as her dad put his arm around her shoulder. "I thought I killed her."

"Before I went on the quest, remember how your mom and I spent a lot of time at camp?" he asked.

Alex nodded.

"The same attacks that are occurring now were happening then too. That's why we kept you home, to keep you safe." He took a deep breath. "Well, there was one battle with hundreds of cyclops. At that point, we had been fighting for three weeks straight so our numbers were low. Annabeth and I were fighting, and we got split up. When the battle finished, no one knew where she was. I found her in a ditch an hour later, bleeding out from a stab wound and left to die."

Alex felt her stomach drop, the thought of losing her mother unimaginable.

"Somehow, the spear went straight through. It didn't cause any serious internal injuries besides bleeding, so ambrosia and a blood transfusion were able to save her." She heard her dad sniffle. "That was the closest I ever got to losing her. I knew I had to go on that quest to end it, even if that meant getting hurt." He pulled away from her to look intently at her. "I know we don't have a prophecy yet, but it will come, and it will call for Poseidon's blood. I can't make your decision for you, but the prophecy will not be complete if both of us aren't there."

"Is this what you and mom have been arguing about?"

He nodded, not seeming surprised at her eavesdropping. "Your mother is reluctant, rightfully so of course, but, in the end, we are the ones who have to walk through the Labyrinth."

"I can't keep seeing my friends die. Sierra…" Alex trailed off, staring in thought that the waves. "If these attacks are really because of us, I feel like I'm the one killing them."

"I know. I'm sorry," he whispered. "I should have ended this twelve years ago, and I'm sorry that you're dragged into this because I couldn't protect myself." His voice broke. "I would give anything to leave you behind, but it's the _only_ way. We won't be able to stop her otherwise."

Alex sat up straighter. "Who exactly are we working against?"

Percy sighed. "Her name is Mesperyian, goddess of torture. My father apparently brutalized her and burned her with boiling water when she tried to ask him for help. She was left horribly disfigured. The Furies found her and made her immortal, forever able to bring revenge against Poseidon through his children. She had been in Tartarus for years, reforming. When your mother and I went into Tartarus years ago, she sensed me. As soon as she got out, I was her first target. At the time, you were still young enough that your scent wasn't strong enough for her to track. But she found Able too. That's why he was on the quest as well. Now, she knows who you are too." He sighed again. "You're going to find out, Alex, that this shit never ends."

Alex chuckled despite the hopeless undertone. "Well, then we might as well get started now. I've made my decision."

/

At breakfast the next morning, the Jacksons were delighted to see Rachel Elizabeth Dare come striding into the mess hall. With the blessings of the oracle, she did not look a day over eighteen years old. She greeted the family with warm hugs, having met Alex multiple times over the years.

She punched Percy's shoulder. "Thanks to you, I had an episode when trying to sell one of my art pieces! I was just trying to tell a potential buyer about which type of oil paints I used when all of a sudden, I was seeing none other than Percy Jackson walking in the dark. To say the least, I lost that buyer." She hugged him again. "I'm really happy you're home."

Her dad laughed. "Thanks, Rachel. I missed you too."

Rachel stepped back to observe the family. "So, what is going on-" She suddenly swayed on her feet and held a hand to her head.

"Rachel?" Her mom asked tentatively.

Rachel cursed. "I can't even be here for ten minutes-" Her eyes went green and she collapsed.

Percy caught her and set her down at one of the dining tables. Campers started to gather around them.

Percy looked at his daughter, and said, "Here we go."

/

 **Here's Part Two. Mesperyian is a made-up goddess, by the way. She's from some other story on the internet, so to whomever created her, hats off to you. I found her through Google, and then I added the Poseidon part to make her fit the story. I hope that's legal. Let me know what you think about these chapters. Sorry for the spelling errors or whatever. See y'all in six months.**


	6. Chapter 5

"Absolutely not."

Percy and Alex had been trying for over an hour to convince Annabeth to let them go on the quest. She was adamant is keeping her family together at camp.

"There has got to be another way," she pleaded, pacing next to the ping pong table.

"Annabeth," Chiron stepped in, "You know better than anyone that there is no other way. The oracle has spoken."

"Sorry," Rachel mumbled from the corner of the room. She was sitting on a stool, looking exhausted and dejected since she had just delivered a possible death sentence to her friend and his daughter.

"Annabeth," Percy tried again, "You saw what happened last time this happened. The attacks won't stop. Mesperyian has an endless supply of monsters coming her way through the Labyrinth." He tapped his fingers against the table in frustration, a habit Alex did as well. "We know its bait for us, but what other choice do we have? If any other demigod goes, she'll simply uproot their infrastructure and move throughout the Labyrinth so we can't follow them."

"What about Hazel? Or Nico? They can help with the tunnel system." Annabeth shot back, still pacing.

Percy groaned. "We've been over this. We can't reach the Romans because of the communication jam, and Nico's underground capabilities aren't strong enough to fight against Eupalinos."

"Who?" Alex butted in.

"Son of Athena who created an irrigation tunnel under Samos Island. It's over a kilometer long and still stands to this day. Amazing feat of engineering at the time, but that's beside the point," her mother ranted. "The problem is that Eupalinos is somehow working for Mesperyian now, but he's stronger. Your dad said he has god-like powers. He's able to destroy and resurrect tunnels better than Hazel can, even in the Labyrinth."

"As soon as Mesperyian senses a demigod that isn't a child of Poseidon walking through the Labyrinth towards them-" Percy snapped his fingers, "-poof, they're gone. But because of Eupalinos, they can always find a way back to Camp."

"They will only allow children of Poseidon to approach them," Chiron finished.

There was a pause as that sunk in for the group.

"But what if we-" Annabeth started in protest.

"Chiron, Rachel," Percy interrupted her, "Can we have a few minutes alone, please?" He and her mom were in a glaring contest, one that Alex was happy to not be in the middle of.

Chiron and Rachel glanced at each other before nodding and exiting.

"You're being irrational," Percy said once the door closed.

Annabeth threw her hands in the air. "Can you really blame me? This isn't just you anymore, Percy. This involves our _daughter_! Does that not bother you?"

"Mom." Alex knew she needed to interject. "Shouldn't it be _my_ choice to go on the quest? You know, since it is my blood and all."

Her mom huffed and crossed her arms. "This isn't the time for jokes, Alex. This isn't some training exercise you can just restart if you mess up. One screw up can get you and your father killed."

"Mom," Alex said firmly, "I've been training _with you_ for ten years now. I've been in fights. I've been in battles. Yeah, we weren't exactly planning on my first quest being a battle to the death, but here we are. If I'm not ready now, I never will be." Alex thought about all of her friends that had died. She thought about Sierra. A lump grew in her throat. "I need you to trust me." Alex watched her mother's reaction to her mini monologue, seeing if she got through at all. Her mom sighed again, looking at the ceiling to hold back tears.

"She's right, Annabeth," Percy said softly. "It's not your choice to make."

Alex obviously understood her mother's hesitation. She had already lost her husband for twelve years. Now, after getting him back, he was asking to literally walk back into the same place, to the same monster that took him in the first place, and, oh yeah, their daughter has to go too, but if they don't, lots of people could die.

It would tear apart any person, but especially Annabeth. Her brain knew they had to go, but her heart couldn't let them.

She finally looked at them, the two still sitting at the ping-pong table. She was openly crying now. "Percy, I don't-"

There was a loud crash in the distance.

Their time had run out.

/

"Nobody cut a head off!" Percy yelled over the sound of battle, as he deflected a bite from one of the many hydra heads in front of him with the flat of his blade.

The hydra had more heads than Alex could count. It was almost like someone purposefully cut its heads before sending it into the Labyrinth just to make the demigods' day harder.

Alex was holding off her own hydra head, dodging and rolling to avoid its snarling teeth. She was on her own, as were most campers. The frequent attacks had left the number of healthy demigods small, at a mere twenty-six even as reinforcements came in during the day from around the area.

Each hydra head was occupied with one camper and there were few archers supporting them, telling Alex that the hydra had somewhere around twenty heads. She couldn't figure out how that was possible as almost all hydras started with nine heads.

 _Did someone cut their heads on purpose?_ Alex thought as she ducked under the attacking head. It was the only conceivable idea she could come up with, but it only confused her more.

Alex heard a scream come from her right, seeing an older Hephaestus camper getting snatched up by the head he was fighting in the corner of her eye. Her stomach flipped in dread, so she focused on the battle in front of her. Then she heard a cry from her left.

They were all going to die if they stayed there.

"We need fire!" Alex yelled, hoping her father would hear.

"I know!" she heard him yell back. She dared a glance over at him, seeing him fending off two heads. "Anyone got an ETA on Leo?" he yelled to everyone.

"Tomorrow morning!" Alex heard her mom yell from somewhere on her left.

Only the sounds of battle could be heard as they mulled over that information.

"I have an idea," he yelled, "but you're not going to like it!"

"I never do!" her mom yelled back."

"Move it to the lava wall!"

"That's across camp!"  
"Do you have a better idea?"

"You're crazy!"

"Love you too!"

Alex doesn't know how they could a full-blown conversation in the midst of a battle, but that was her parents.

"Campers!" Alex commanded. "Fall back to the tree line! We're taking it to the lava wall!" Alex stabbed her knife at the head, hitting it under the eye. It was enough to distract it. allowing her to roll away and take off towards the edge of the woods. She scanned around her to see the other campers doing the same. She heard yet another scream behind her as someone could not run fast enough to escape one of the hydra's jaws. Roars came from behind her, as well, telling her that the hydra was in pursuit. It only made her run faster.

They reached the edge of the woods on the south side of the creek. Alex ran to her parents who were together, watching the approaching hydra. The only positive of the large number of heads on the monster was that it seemed to slow it down.

"What's the plan?" she gasped.

"Take it through the mess hall. Avoid the cabins at all costs," her mother said. "That should cause less damage."

"Yeah, we might have to reconsider that plan," Percy suddenly said, his eyes on the monster. "I think it's taking a detour."

The monster was no longer coming at the group of demigods. It had changed his path due south.

Alex cursed and took off. "The Big House!"

/

Alex could hear people following her, but she didn't dare slow down to check.

She ran past the arena, which was now half rubble. The archery range was completely destroyed. The hydra was now making its presence known. She followed the path of destruction, seeing the hydra not far ahead. They still had a couple hundred yards before they reached the Big House.

The monster had slowed its pace, making it easy for Alex to run by it. It roared as she passed and picked up its pace again, shaking the ground beneath their feet. However, it was forced to slow once more as the other demigods reached it and fought for its attention.

Alex continued to the Big House, which seemed to have noticed the incoming guest.

Alex saw Aunt Piper on the porch, who was on medic duty that day. "Evacuate to the pine tree!" Alex called to her and the other medics who were outside. She ran right by them and into the Big House, yelling out the same order to everyone inside. Quickly, injured campers were being moved out of the house. Alex desperately searched everyone who passed, not seeing her best friend.

Finally, she saw her being brought out on a stretcher between an Apollo camper and Piper. Both of her lower legs were in a thick cast. A sob left Alex's throat as she ran over, seeing Sierra for the first time since her injury.

"Si," Alex reached her side and walked alongside the stretcher as it moved through the Big House.

Sierra looked exhausted, but she smiled when she saw Alex. She reached up and grabbed Alex's hand. "I heard I missed a lot."

Alex laughed despite the situation. "You have no idea." Alex squeezed her hand. "Are you going to be okay?"

"Me?" They walked through the front door. "Don't worry about me. Go save the world for me, okay?"

"Alex, you have to go," Piper said, but she had a small smile on her face. "It's getting too close."

Alex gave her hand one last squeeze for good luck before separating and taking off back towards the battle.

The other demigods had managed to keep the hydra at bay, but it was still slowly advancing towards the Big House.

Alex stopped short, surveying their surroundings. She knew they weren't going to be able to turn the hydra around with just their weapons. They needed something bigger. She got an idea.

She ran around to the back of the hydra, facing it. "Hey, Dad!" she yelled out to her father who was again fighting two heads, this time with her mother at his side. She saw him quickly glance at her in acknowledgement. "I have an idea, but I need your help!"

He nodded. "Annabeth, you got them?"

"Got them!"

Her dad slipped away from the fight, leaving Annabeth to fend for herself, her knife a mere flash as it gracefully parried the heads away.

Percy reached her side. "What's the plan?"

Instead of answering, Alex summoned the creek. She felt her gut tighten as the water rose, tens of thousands of gallons of water raising thirty feet in the air.

Her dad whistled. "Oh, I like this plan."

The pain in her stomach loosened slightly, as she felt her father take some of the weight of the water off of her. She took a deep breath.

"If you can hold the majority of this, I can shoot water at it to turn it towards us. Hopefully it's dumb enough to follow a massive blob of water across Camp," she said, keeping her concentration on the water.

"If there is something I've learned over the years-" he took more of the weight with a small grunt, "-monsters are dumb."

Alex clenched her teeth as she shot a jet of water at the hydra, hitting multiple of its heads. "Hey, pea-brain!" She shot another powerful stream at the monster. All of its heads snapped towards her in annoyance, but they quickly turned their attention to the giant floating ball of water in front of it. "Does your brain get smaller with each new head or are you just dumb?"

The hydra roared and started towards them.

Alex turned, shooting more water at the hydra behind her back. "This is the part of the plan where we run!"

The duo took off towards the lava wall, the ball of water bouncing in the air behind them with the hydra close behind.

They were approaching the cabins. Knowing they had no other choice, they continued forward. Alex said a silent apology to her mom.

They barreled through the minor cabins first. Alex didn't dare look back to check the damage, but the flying debris over her head told her it was extensive. They then reached the larger major cabins. With no hesitation, the monster crashed into the left side of the 'U', destroying the Hermes and Hephaestus cabins.

There was a loud explosion behind them, and Alex felt heat sear her back. She checked over her shoulder to see the remains of the Hephaestus cabin and the Apollo cabin burning, likely from a prototype bomb left in the make-shift forge of the Hephaestus cabin. She shot more water at the monster to keep its attention on them and not on the cabins. Their ball of water was about half depleted.

They veered right, looking to slip between the Hera and Demeter cabin. While the demigods and their ball fit through just fine, the hydra had other plans. Its many heads smashed into the cabins, sending pieces of quartz and wood at Percy and Alex. She could feel splinters digging into her back. A sharp piece of quartz nicked her arm. She continued to run, her lungs started to burn from the smoke and debris. She shot yet another line of water behind her.

They approached the Mess Hall, its tall columns suddenly looking dangerous in their situation. Alex and Percy weaved their way through the tables and columns, cringing as they heard crashing rock. Alex quickly glanced behind her, only see one of the massive columns falling directly at them.

"Watch out!" she yelled, grabbing her father's shirt sleeve and pulling him with her to the right. The column fell with a heavy crash next to them, hitting a hearth which sent burning wood scattering across the floor. The plume of dust made it hard to breath. Alex's eyes stung as she tried to navigate her way out of the Mess Hall.

Another column fell on their right and the hydra roared from behind them.

"We're almost there!" her dad yelled. Even he sounded winded.

They finally made it through the Mess Hall, the Lava Wall coming into view in the distance.

"Alex, go ahead and set the lava distribution to its max! We need enough lava to burn all of the heads at once!" he yelled at her.

Alex gave a yell of approval and picked up her speed. Using the creek like a trampoline, she shot herself an extra hundred yards forward to give herself a head start.

The control center was, thankfully, at the bottom of the lava wall so Alex was able to reach it quickly. She bounded her way in, stumbling over to the controls. She had only had to work the controls once, when a camper she was instructing almost fell into a stream of lava. She had simply pulled back on the switch to rid the wall of lava.

Now, she took the control and shoved it forward with all of her weight.

There was a loud screeching sound, as the wall's various sliding doors quickly opened all the way, leaving no obstructions to the lava.

For a painful second, nothing happened. Did the wall even have a reservoir big enough to drop that much lava? Alex realized she had never actually seen someone use the wall at maximum capacity.

Then, the ground shook beneath her feet. Lava erupted from the doors that were scattered all over the wall, gushing out tons and tons of molten rock.

Alex left the control hut, only to get blasted by a wave of heat that nearly knocked her off her feet.

Her plan might work.

"Get out of the way!"

Her head snapped around to see her father sprinting straight towards her, the hydra in pursuit. The ball of water was no longer depleted, in fact it seemed bigger than the original. It was starting to change shape, stretching out like it was going to wrap up the hydra in a massive water blanket. Her father's face was white with strain as he got closer.

Alex hurried to the side of the lava wall, out of the way of the stampeding monster. She could see her father's plan, but she didn't like it.

When they were about twenty yards from the wall, Percy quickly changed his direction and jumped towards Alex. The (now) sheet of water stopped where it was.

The hydra, all twenty of its heads, was unable to move as swiftly. It ran straight through the sheet of water, one of its heads snapping at her father's feet as he dove.

As soon as all of the monster cleared the water, he yelled, "Push!"

Alex's knees almost buckled from the piercing pain in her stomach as she called on the water to shove forward with as much strength as it could. Her father let out a yell next to her.

The water moved at the turning hydra, stretching around its form like a rubber band and shoving it towards the heat source.

The monster's momentum and the sudden push from thousands of tons of water pushed it straight over the safety wall and into the gushing waterfall of lava. It shrieked as it fell into the pool at the bottom, the lava streams fall over the majority of its heads. There was a sickening smell of burning flesh, before the hydra exploded into dust with one last wail, coating the lava in gold before it was burned away.

Alex collapsed to the ground in exhaustion, her dad next to her laying on his back as well. He let out a laugh.

"Not bad for an old man, huh?" he teased, breathing heavily.

"Alex! Percy!" They heard Annabeth yell, her footsteps getting closer. Alex could see her and Piper running towards them, weapons drawn.

Alex held up a thumbs up. "We're good. Just waiting for the world to stop spinning." Her voice was hoarse.

Her mom let out a dry laugh. " _Di immortales_ , we saw the whole thing. A massive ball of water? Really?"

"It worked, didn't it?" Her dad defended her plan. He sat up with a groan and held a hand to his head. "I'm going to sleep well tonight."

Piper's face fell. "I don't know about that one. The cabins…" she trailed off.

Alex cursed and sat up. "Oh Hades, how bad is the damage?"

"They're still putting out of the fires right now. Think you can help with that?"

/

After putting out the fires with lake water, the Jackson family and Piper receded to the Big House which was untouched due to their quick actions. They were having a Council meeting to assess the damage.

"We have six dead, nine injured, and two missing," Piper reported.

"The archery range is destroyed. Half of the arena is destroyed. Hades. Iris, Hypnos, Hermes, Hephaestus, Apollo, Demeter, and Hera cabins are destroyed. Nemesis, Ares, and Athena cabins are heavily damaged. Zeus and Artemis cabins are damaged, but still livable. Mess Hall is destroyed. The lava wall needs to be drained and reset. And lastly, the water stunt left hundreds of marine life dead so we have to submit an environmental impact report to the Council of Cloven Elders," Annabeth read off from a piece of parchment. She sighed and rubbed her forehead tiredly.

"Sorry," Alex muttered.

"If we get attacked like this again, we're as good as dead," an Ares camper spat.

"Our resources are low. We were making most of our weapons in the cabin forge. That's all gone," a Hephaestus camper said.

"The Apollo cabin is stretched too thin. We can't staff a sufficient number of medics and archers right now to help in another battle," another camper said.

"Forget about a fight," a Hermes camper said, "Where are we all supposed to sleep tonight?"

They fell into a grim silence.

"Everyone," Chiron said, "Annabeth and I will figure out the logistics. In the meantime, go to your cabins and assist in the clean-up. Reconvene at five, tonight."

All of the cabin leaders stood to leave, leaving Chiron and the Jackson family behind. Piper gave Annabeth's hand a reassuring squeeze before leaving with everyone else.

"You need to go," Alex heard her mom say softly once the room was clear. She looked up to see her mother already staring at her. "I've been stupid. Selfish." She shook her head. "You _have_ to go."

Alex looked at her dad, whose jaw was clenched tight in sadness.

Alex only felt tired and numb. Her throat still burned. Her legs ached. Her gut was sore, never had she controlled that much water before. She wanted it to be over, for things to go back to normal.

"You will leave tomorrow morning, at sunrise. Use the rest of the day to prepare for the quest and sleep well tonight. All three of you can stay in the Poseidon cabin. I will make sure no other campers get assigned there," Chiron said somberly. "Let us pray there are no more attacks tonight."

/

By the gods, they got peace that night.

Everyone that night received US Military MREs for dinner, kept only for emergencies such as the one Camp suddenly found itself in. Campers were assigned sleeping quarters in other cabins, using makeshift cots and sleeping bags. The injured were transferred back to the Big House, which was quickly running out of room.

Percy and Alex packed for their quest, albeit there wasn't much. Percy told Alex that if they were there for more than a day, something terribly wrong must have happened. They decided to keep it light, each having a small pack that had water, a few protein bars, nectar, ambrosia, and string, just in case.

Alex couldn't help but watch her dad as they prepped. While she was nervously fumbling over herself, pulling things in and out of her pack, adjusting the straps, he did it like he was packing for school. He was done in five minutes before he came over to help her.

It was a little intimidating to Alex. How many times had he done this before?

Alex went to see Sierra that night before bed, leaving her parents in the Poseidon cabin. Thirty minutes later, a camper showed up at their door, telling them that their daughter fell asleep at Sierra's bedside and no one had the heart to wake her up. They decided to leave her there, knowing she was so tired she could sleep well on a rock that night.

This left Percy and Annabeth alone in the cabin, which was technically against Camp rules, but no one was going to say anything.

Just like old times.

It was late, around midnight, when Percy finally gave up on sleep. Neither of them could stop their racing minds. Annabeth was just as awake as he was.

He tightened his arm around his wife and said quietly, "Want to go for a walk?"

She nodded so they both stood, grabbing sweatshirts to keep out the night air before sneaking out of the cabin hand-in-hand.

They reached the beach easily. There were around-the-clock watches going on so a demigod out of their cabin at night was no longer an incriminating sight.

They found a small area at the corner of the beach that was out of sight from the patrolling guard. They were surrounded by trees in a 'U' shape, facing the ocean. The surf was rough and restless, just like Camp. It crashed onto the beach, the water rushing up to the edge of their alcove before falling back to the ocean. The moon was large and bright, the trees around them casting shadows which further hid them from wandering eyes.

They sat in silence for a while, Annabeth's head on his shoulder as they watched the water.

She broke the silence. "I really want to make you promise that you will come home this time," she said softly. "On the River Styx, on the gods, on blue cookies. Promise that _both_ you and Alex will come home safe and alive so we can finally put this shit behind us."

Percy smiled sadly. "You know I can't do that. Not when she is with me."

Annabeth buried her face into his shoulder. "I know."

She couldn't help but imagine her little Alex, young and careless trying to pick up her first sword. Alex was six when she first held a weapon. Annabeth had brought her to a class she was teaching, and the campers took turns letting little Alex hold their swords, of which almost all were too heavy for the young girl. Even now, ten years later, Annabeth still saw that little girl every time they ran into battle.

"No matter what, she leaves that place alive." Percy embraced her. "I can promise you that."

They were both crying. "Bring our baby home, Percy," she sobbed quietly.

"Bring our baby home," he whispered to himself, promising to himself. He tightened his arms and he felt her squeeze back.

 _No matter what_.

/

 **Let me know what you thought about the hydra scene. I'm self-conscious about my fight scenes. I always feel like my words don't do the picture in my head justice.**

 **I'm spoiling y'all. It's only been a little over two months since my last upload. Go me :D /s**

 **College starts soon. Hopefully another chapter will be out before then, but don't count on it. In a perfect world, this would be done before I leave but that's just heresy. Sorry about the spelling errors blah blah blah.**


	7. Chapter 6

They decided to leave at noon.

Chiron had received word that former campers would be arriving over the course of the morning so Percy decided it would be best to wait and brief everyone at once.

Alex decided to pass the time in the infirmary, at Sierra's bedside. She had packed the previous night with her father, who packed his travel bag like a high school senior would pack their bag for school: bare minimum for everything except food.

It made Alex felt like a freshman again.

 _"We shouldn't be there more than a few hours, our time," her father had told her as they packed. "Your mind will try to convince you that it has been a lot longer than that because of how the Labyrinth works, but your body will know the difference."_

 _Alex nodded. "I know that." She discreetly removed the extra seven protein bars she had packed._

Alex was not able to eat that morning due to her nerves, and her heart was pounding from either non-stop adrenaline or her anxiety, she couldn't tell. Being by Sierra was the only thing keeping her heart in her chest.

It was funny. Normally, being around Sierra would have the opposite effect, but now that she was genuinely anxious, Sierra was her only medication.

Alex must have been staring unfocused in her chair for too long because Sierra waved a hand in her face from her prone position on the medical cot. "Hey, you here with me?" she asked gently.

Alex blinked and pulled at her ponytail subconsciously. "Yeah. yeah, sorry." She checked her watch. It was almost ten. Her throat tightened again as her mind processed the incoming deadline. She felt like she was watching the time tick away to her execution. She tried to swallow the lump in her throat and took a deep breath to loosen the imaginary vest that was restricting her breathing. Her fingers started to involuntarily tap the bed sheets.

Had she prepared enough? Was she ready? Did she forget to pack her second knife? What if she did need those extra protein bars?

Her thoughts ended when Sierra chuckled. The injured girl stopped Alex's tapping fingers with her own, clasping their hands together.

"Well, that's obviously a damn lie." Sierra sat up, wincing slightly. She looked pointedly at Alex after she got comfortable.

"What?" Alex said defensively.

"You're obviously freaking out and you're trying to hide it."

"Am not."

Another pointed look.

"Okay, maybe a little."

Doubtful turn of the head.

"Sierra, what the fuck am I doing?" Alex groaned and let her head fall forward onto the cot, resting her forehead on the soft sheets. She felt Sierra pull her hand away from hers and start massaging the back of her head, her nails scratching softly at her scalp.

"Like, I've wanted this for so long," Alex continued, trying to keep her voice from wavering, "a-and now it's finally here, I'm leaving in a few hours and all I want to do is go back to sleep and not think about this at all-" she ranted, her voice slightly muffled, "-but I also want to go out there and kick ass and prove myself as the daughter of the strongest demigods of the millennia. I want to make my parents proud but if I fuck up, my dad could die and then I would never be able to face my mom and I would be exiled from c-camp and-"

"Okay, slow down there," Sierra cut her off. Her hand rubbed circles at the top of Alex's neck. "Let's break this down, okay?"

Alex nodded, her body starting to relax.

"You have been training since the age of, what, five? That's eleven years, more than any teenage campers at camp. You can control water. You're super smart. Besides your mom, you're the best knife fighter at camp. You'll be with your dad who is the strongest demigod, maybe ever. You're really freaking smart. You have the second fastest lava wall climb ever. And, most importantly-" her hand stopped, "-if you die, I'll find you in the Underworld and kill you again so you are not allowed to die."

She pulled away her hand so Alex lifted her head up to look at her. Sierra was looking at her intensely, their faces close enough that Alex felt heat rush up her neck. Her heart started to pound again, but she wasn't thinking of the quest.

"You're going to be fine, okay?" Sierra asserted quietly. "I know you will." Her eyes flicked down for a second before returning to Alex's.

Any other time, Alex would have cleared her throat and leaned back, protecting her priceless friendship from going too fast.

But between feeling like she was walking to her death and Sierra's words, Alex felt herself leaning forward. Her heart jumped violently when she noticed Sierra doing the same.

"Hey Alex- Oh!"

Alex sprang back into her chair and snapped to the doorway of the infirmary. It was Derrick, a son of Apollo who worked in the infirmary. He was looking at the floor. She bit her lip to keep herself from yelling at him to leave.

"I-I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to intrude- You're dad- He sent me- I should've knocked-" he sputtered out.

"It's okay, Derrick," Sierra said calmly. "What do you need to tell Alex?"

He straightened. "Uh, everyone's here. They're meeting in the Counsel Room in five minutes. Your dad sent me to get you."

Alex sighed, knowing this was coming eventually.

It just happened to come at the _worst_ possible time.

"Yeah, okay. I'll be there in a minute," Alex replied.

Derrick nodded and quickly walked out of the room. Alex turned back to Sierra.

"That's another reason I know you'll be fine," the injured girl said smugly. "You can't kiss me if you're dead."

Alex's eyes widened, but she couldn't help but laugh at her bluntness. "You are unbelievable."

Sierra smiled confidently. "I know." She held her arms out. "This isn't goodbye. I'll see you soon."

They hugged tightly, and despite her confident words, Alex heard Sierra sniffling next to her ear. As they pulled apart, Alex kissed her cheek. She went to leave before turning around in the doorway. She took in the image of her best friend (and kind-of girlfriend?) and every detail of the infirmary.

If Sierra was going to survive, Alex was going to have to succeed.

Alex smiled, feeling strangely calm.

"I'll see you later."

/

The Counsel Room was over-packed when Alex got there. She quickly recognized the new adults in the room: Leo, Malcolm, Will, Nico, Clarisse, and Chris, among others. Everyone was chatting, catching up as most hadn't seen each other since the previous summer. Most former campers would return for the final week of the summer as an annual reunion.

Her father was standing at the head of the table, her mother next to him. He gestured her over with a jerk of his head so she went to take her place next to him. He had a playful grin on his face as he nudged her with his shoulder. Her mom smiled at her, but her eyes were sad.

 _I need to hug her._

"Alright, everyone! Let's get started," he shouted over the noise. The room quickly quieted.

"Good to have you back, Perce!" Travis Stoll called out from the back.

Her dad smiled. "Missed you guys, too. Can't wait to beat you in Capture the Flag next week."

There was a roar of protest around the room.

"Okay, okay," he raised his hands to settle everyone. "We can discuss teams later. Alex and I don't have much time so we have to get this started."

All the eyes in the room went to Alex at her name so Alex scanned them. Most of the adults seemed proud to finally see 'the baby' head out on a quest. A few, mainly Aunt Piper and Grover, seemed nervous. Alex stood up straighter.

Percy leaned over the table, looking at a map of camp. "Alex and I are going to enter the labyrinth through Zeus' fist. As soon as we go through, Malcolm and Clarisse, I need you to set up defensive positions here-" he started to circle points around Zeus' fist with a marker, "-here, behind this boulder, and here. Will, get the archers up in the trees. Make sure they are stocked with fire arrows in case another hydra comes through. Leo, there's enough in supply?"

Leo nodded. "Yessir, the cabin finished twenty quivers of them this morning. We also rigged Greek fire traps around the Fist that are ready to fire on our command."

Percy continued going around the circle. "Piper and Katie, be ready with the pegasi. We might have to drop weapons, medical supplies, transport people or something. Make sure at least five people are ready to go any second. Chris, split your cabin based on skill and put people where we need them. Pollux, same thing. Grover, have you already told the wood nymphs to evacuate?"

Glover bleated. "The last one evacuated to Central Park this morning. No one is left."

Percy nodded and turned to his wife. "Anything else?"

Her mom stepped forward, examining the map. Her eyes were a sharp grey. "We have no idea what is going to come out behind them. Everyone needs to remain vigilant no matter how long Percy and Alex are gone. The Labyrinth isn't natural. It will strike when we are least prepared so everyone should be armed at all times. Guards at the defensive positions are to rotate every two hours to discourage distraction. If a battle happens and we fall below fifty-percent of our starting man-power, pegasi are to be abandoned, and we will need medics and supply runners to fill in fighting positions. Anyone below the age of thirteen will remain with Chiron and a small, predetermined guard unit at the Big House. They will help the infirmary and run supplies outside of the battlefield." Her mother's eyes scanned everyone in the room, looking for any objections.

"Our communications are down. We have no reinforcements so don't be dumb. Fight in pairs, only use special weapons if necessary. We are all we got. Don't abuse it," she finished. She looked at her daughter, and raised an eyebrow. "Anything to add?"

Alex's mind reprocessed everything she just heard, analyzing it for missing points. She nodded. "If we fall back, head towards the creek. Dad and I might need a quick soak to replenish once we get out." There were a few chuckles around the room. She continued, "In the last couple of fights, we tried to out-strength them. We have to be smarter today because whatever we do will probably piss the monsters off a lot so they're going to send everything they have." Alex looked at all of the adults around the room, looking at the sixteen-year-old like she was in charge. "We're the leaders here. If camp fails, _we_ did something wrong. Adults, I know it's been a long time since a lot of you have seen a real battle, but the campers here have been fighting for their lives for over a week now. Remember what that's like before you interact with us. People are looking for someone to turn to, and you signed up for that by showing up here. Don't give us any bullshit. We need your best right now so you better remember your training really fast." Alex saw her parents looking at each other with proud grins in her peripheral vision, but she kept her head forward. "You will likely have at least a day before any attacks happen so get some training in when you are not on guard duty. There's no time for rustiness right now. The new generation needs you all."

There was a moment of silence before a female voice piped up, "If the rest of your generation is like you, I think we'll be the ones needing you." Piper looked at her proudly.

Alex felt her heart swell at her aunt's words.

"We have an hour before we leave so everyone start moving," Percy said, putting his arms around Annabeth and Alex. "We'll see everyone at the Fist."

/

The family sat in silence in the Poseidon cabin. They were next to each other on one bunk, with Annabeth in the middle. Her mother was holding her and her father's hands tightly. She brought her daughter's hand to her lips and their husband's, kissing them gently. She cleared her throat.

"I know you both know what you have to do," her voice was fragile, "and there's nothing I can do to stop you."

Alex hugged her mom tightly. She couldn't think of any words to say besides: "I love you."

Her mom kissed her forehead. "I'm so proud of you, Alex. I know I'm hard on you, but you're ready. You've been ready, for a long time. It's just hard to not see you as my little baby."

Alex felt a surge of power at her mother's blessing. She pulled away to look at her mom. "I still am your baby. I'm gonna need help asking Sierra out when I get back."

Her parents laughed and Alex fell back into her mother's arms.

All bias aside, her mom gave great hugs. She squeezed with the perfect pressure, her hands gently rubbed her back which sent warmth throughout Alex's body, and she knew the perfect time to hold on for. Their relationship had its fair share of bumps over the years, but Alex always felt safe with her mom, no matter what. It made pulling away now from that safety so difficult.

"It's my turn to be the hero now, okay?" Alex said to her mom with a smile.

Annabeth took a deep breath and nodded, releasing her daughter from her arms.

She sensed that her moment with her mother was over so she stood and went to gather her things to give her parents a minute.

Annabeth pulled herself into Percy, clinging tightly to his t-shirt. She took a deep breath, searing his smell into her brain for what could be the second-last time.

"We have a deal," she said quietly into his chest.

He shifted from her embrace and kissed her. Barely pulling away, he whispered against her lips, "I'm going to bring her home safe. I promise on the Styx."

She nodded, a tear falling down her cheek.

Annabeth knew her daughter was going to make it home, even if it took Percy's final breath. She didn't know if her husband would do the same.

/

Percy and Alex arrived at the Fist to see the defense operation was underway. Hephaestus kids were constructing battlefield infirmaries and guard posts. Hermes kids were running boxes of supplies to and from camp. Leo and Clarisse were inspecting the weapons as they were brought in.

The duo walked up to Chiron, who was directing a unit of guards. He turned to them when he finished.

"It is time."

Alex shouldered her travel bag (she made sure her backup knife was packed before they left) and followed the centaur towards the pile of rocks.

Alex stared at the black pit that was the entrance of the Labyrinth. She could not hear any claws scraping against the ground or howls bouncing off the walls. It provided a false sense of security that was not helping her nerves.

"Well at least there's only one way to go," her dad joked. His attempt at humor did little to ease her anxiety, but she appreciated the effort.

Percy could understand her trepidation. The Labyrinth was a difficult quest for even the most experienced fighter, much less a first quest. One of the few things a demigod can usually control in a quest is their environment. With the Labyrinth, this wasn't possible. It was unpredictable and out to kill anyone with godly heritage.

Alex nodded, taking a deep breath of fresh air. "Down we go."

They both bid Chiron goodbye and took off into the rocks.

Percy drew his sword almost immediately, the blade providing light in the never ending darkness. The sounds of camp diminished behind them until they were left in the eerie silence of the cave they were traveling through. Only their footsteps could be heard. Their feet slightly sank with each step in the damp mud.

The younger demigod stayed a step behind her father, following him as they moved. At the first junction, her father did not hesitate as they went left.

"How can you be so confident in which way to go?" Alex asked as the dirt under their feet started to change to a stone pathway. Shifting walls could be heard in the distance.

"It doesn't matter which way we go," he said over his shoulder, "Eupalinos knew we're here as soon as we stepped foot in the cave. He'll lead us straight to him because that's what he wants."

"So they know exactly where we are?"

"Kinda. I think it's more of a general direction than distance. Mesperyian knows we're children of Poseidon because she can sense our blood, or something. Between the two of them, we should have no problem getting there."

A doorway suddenly opened on their right and Percy immediately followed the pathway.

"Where exactly is 'there'?" Alex asked.

"They constructed a mini city down here. Mesperyian has her own castle and everything. We're going towards the competition arena, at least I think."

"And that's where you were? For twelve years?"

There was a moment of silence before he replied, "Sometimes. If I wasn't in the arena, I was in my cell-" he made air quotes around the last word, "-It was literally an insulated, concrete box. They kept it as dry as possible so I couldn't pull water from anything. That's what affected me the most."

They came to a junction with three paths. Her dad stared at them, like he was waiting for something. Suddenly, the left and right paths crumpled, leaving the middle path as the only choice.

"Thanks," Percy muttered sarcastically. They continued forward.

"Isn't it kind of bad that we're heading straight to them? Shouldn't we try to find another way?"

The passage way widened so Percy slowed until they were walking side-by-side.

"It's not ideal, but since they know where we are and Eupalinos can make basically any path he wants, anytime we made a new path, he could connect to it. We would be going in circles."

Alex nodded and fell silent.

"And it didn't feel like twelve years," her dad suddenly said. "It felt like a year, maybe eighteen months. That's why I barely aged." He paused. "I mean, neither did your mom." He looked at her humorously. "We got good genetics, I guess."

Alex rolled her eyes, but laughed at his bad joke.

 _My dad is a dork._

/

 **Only took me four months this time. Go me!**

 **College is hard. Engineering is hard. The weekends are fun though ;)**

 **This chapter was a lot of dialogue and action, so I tried to keep it as interesting as possible. Hope y'all enjoyed the Sierra/Alex scene, I had fun writing it. Action next chapter so get ready, whenever it comes out. Also, I feel like there's a lot of continuity errors in this story since I wrote the chapters so far apart and I forget the little details so if there are, I apologize.**

 **Please review because I'm needy and the email notifications remind me that this story exists.**

 **Sorry for any errors, blah blah blah. See y'all in six months (or less! Because that seems to be the trend rn).**


	8. Chapter 7

The Labyrinth was _seriously_ messing with Alex's vibes.

Was she tired or full of energy? Was she hungry or full? Was her sword heavy or light as ever? They could have left a day ago or an hour ago. They could have walked five miles or fifty miles. Her mind and body were in a constant fight of which was right. Her mind was exhausted; her body was fresh. When she zoned out she felt fine, but as soon as she focused on a part of her body, it screamed in protest.

Her father's words ran through her head.

 _Your body will know the difference._

Her father and her had been walking in a comfortable silence for a while, listening for shifts in the walls. So far, her father had not hesitated at a single junction.

"So," she piped up, "I know time works weird in the Labyrinth, but how?"

"Time is slower here. What feels like a day here might be ten days in the outside world. Don't ask me how; that's a question for your mom."

They turned left. The ground and walls around them were slowly becoming more modern, lavish. They were currently walking on a smooth stone path, the walls still somewhat deteriorated, like an abandoned tunnel under Greece.

Alex could tell they were getting close. She had an unprecedented feeling running through her veins, like everything in her body was telling her to run away. Even her body knew she was walking towards someone meant to oppose her. If her father wouldn't have been there, Alex cannot be certain she would still be walking towards Mesperyian.

No. Her family and friends were depending on her.

She would be walking.

They took a sudden left through a passageway that opened in front of them. The walls were polished stone. Alex could hear cheering in the distance.

Alex took a moment to recognize that she and her dad were walking straight into a deathtrap like they were going for a stroll through Central Park.

"Dad?"

Her father looked at her, slight concern in his eyes.

"Are we considering this a daddy-daughter date?"

He laughed, both surprised and not surprised by her humor in the tense situation. She was his daughter, after all.

"Come here." He slung an arm around her shoulders and hugged her tightly as they continued to walk. "I would be a terrible father if I let this be our first date in over a decade. When we get out of here, there was this really good Chinese place near your grandmother's your mom and I used to go to all the time. Hopefully, it's still open."

"Kenn's restaurant? Mom loves going there. Kenn passed away a few years back, but his daughter took over. It's still open and still really good." She looked up at her dad. "I don't know how we're going to explain your existence, though."

The chanting got louder and a brightly lit opening was ahead of them by only a couple hundred yards.

"We'll figure it out later. Time to focus."

They separated and pulled out their respective weapons, continuing forward. They stopped when they were just out of view from whoever was in the clearing. Despite this, the crowd cheered louder, as if they knew of their presence. Alex could feel the rumbling from the crowd's excitement under her feet.

Her dad turned to her. "Okay, this is the plan."

Alex already knew what he was going to say and she didn't like it.

 _Stay behind me._

She interrupted, "We work as a team and fight together."

He grimaced. "I have to keep you safe. I can take on the big guys and you-"

"What? Stand back and watch you get taken again? Last time you fought these guys, you disappeared for twelve years and that was _with_ Uncle Able so maybe we shouldn't do that again?"

He tried to interrupt, but she was on a role.

"The prophecy specifically says that the blood of Poseidon needs to work _together_. Not one doing all of the work while the other eats popcorn in the back. I know you probably made some pact with mom to bring me back alive or whatever, but if you die then the chances of me surviving would probably not look too good. I know you want to protect me, but that will only get us killed and that does us no good. I swear to you on the River Styx, I'm ready for this!"

Her dad had a proud grin on his face. He pulled her into a hug, kissing her forehead.

"If you think you are ready, then I trust you. I'm so proud of you." He pulled back. "But if you get in any trouble, call my name and do not go after Mesperyian alone. She plays mind games you are not ready for." He sighed deeply. "I wasn't ready the last time so don't try and be some hero. Be smart."

The chanting in the stadium got louder.

"Blood of Poseidon! Approach my kingdom!" A female voice echoed through the cavern.

The venomous way she spat out the word "Poseidon" sent chills down Alex's back.

Alex looked at her dad. He simply nodded and they walked forward, coming into the view of an apparent crowd of spectators. As they came into view, the cheering became deafening.

They walked into the clearing, and for a second, the light blinded Alex. She blinked a few times and looked around, trying to swallow a lump of fear that suddenly arose in her throat.

They were in a massive arena, colosseum style but modernized two-thousand years. There were JumboTrons that showed them walking into the stadium. Drones and other camera equipment flew overhead, following their every move. Stage lights and lasers were moving around the arena like a gameshow, making Alex slightly dizzy. She could smell the popcorn and cheap hot dogs. A paper Pepsi cup landed somewhere on her right from an already-dissatisfied spectator.

Straight ahead of them, Alex could see the master booth that overlooked the stadium. It had large columns on either side, about one hundred feet apart, extending from the ground to the top of the stadium, which was well over four hundred feet. The booth was about halfway up the height of the columns. Directly below the booth was a large set of doors. Above the booth was an apparent scoreboard, stretching the entire length between the columns.

They were almost at the center of the arena. Alex quickly scanned for an exit, but the passageway they walked through and the massive set of doors ahead of them were the only ways of fleeing.

The ground suddenly shook below her and the sound of breaking rocks came from behind her. She turned in time to see the passageway collapsing in on itself, effectively trapping them.

 _Walking straight into a death trap. Cool._

They reached the center, and Alex had never felt so small. The diameter of the circular arena was easily one hundred yards. The deafening sounds around her made it hard to focus.

She looked up at the master booth. Despite being filled with monsters, Alex could make out two figures who seemed to stand above the rest. They had yet to step forward so they were cast in shadows.

"PERSEUS AND ALEXANDRA JACKSON!" the female voice boomed.

The crowd immediately settled, everyone's eyes drawn to the master booth. The two figures stepped forward into the spotlight and Alex felt her stomach twist sharply.

The speaker, who Alex assumed was Mesperyian, was donned in a white dress, almost like a wedding gown. Her arms were bare and her face covered in a veil. Her arms were covered in blisters and third-degree burns. The redness of her burnt skin stuck out against the cleanliness of her dress. She pushed back the veil to reveal her face, which was in no better condition. Alex could see the boils from her position in the arena. She had bald spots all over her head, her hair sticking out in clumps.

To her right was an older gentleman, dressed simply in a black sweatshirt and jeans. His hair and beard were white, with wrinkles all over his face from a lifetime of being in the sun. His eyes, a dark grey that was almost black, were alert and young. She knew it was Eupalinos.

He made piercing eye contact with Alex and she shivered, unable to imagine how she was related to this man.

"Hello, Mesperyian," her father said calmly. "Eupalinos." He nodded in greeting. His voice sounded from the speaker system.

Alex just settled for glaring at them.

"Perseus Jackson," Mesperyian said, her voice loud enough that it was like she was standing right next to them. "I have been waiting for your return. I've missed your company."

"Yeah, can't really say the same," her dad replied.

"And look who you brought with you!" she said excitedly. It sounded like nails on a chalkboard. "The untouchable Alexandra Jackson." Her voice suddenly got quiet, like she was whispering directly into Alex's ear. "I've been looking for you."

Alex jumped against her will.

Mesperyian smiled evilly. She held her hands up and gestured to the crowd. " _We_ have been looking for you!"

The crowd cheered at the sudden inclusion, pounding their feet against the stands.

Alex tilted her head in faux confusion. "You couldn't find me for twelve years? I wasn't like I was exactly hiding."

Mesperyian smiled again. A blister on the corner of her mouth tore open from the movement, causing blood to trickle down her chin. She didn't seem to notice. "You see, granddaughter of Poseidon, the timing just wasn't right. When your father was here last time, you were just a small child. Poseidon's blood was barely flowing through your veins, making you hard to sense. Able Lincaster foolishly revealed your bloodline to us and we knew we had to wait. So, we kept your father because he was much stronger than that Able boy. We let Able go, knowing he was going to stay close to you. If we could sense him, we could find you as well."

The blood dripped from her chin onto the white dress.

"Once we were able to sense you, we killed Able Lincaster because he had no use for us anymore and he was not a threat. Your father, the chosen son of Poseidon, and his daughter, the child of the most powerful demigod lineage of the millennia, were all we needed."

"So that's why you let my dad escape? All a part of your master plan?" Alex retorted.

Mesperyian narrowed her eyes at her. "Perseus Jackson escaping was a slight bump in the road. But, in the end, we knew you would end up here, where you truly belong." She raised her arms again and the crowd exploded into applause.

"Poseidon turned me into the monster you see before me." Her voice boomed louder than the crowd. "The Furies gave me a second chance to gain revenge on Poseidon by killing his bloodline." Another blister popped on her face. The veins in her head and face were bulging. Her voice became louder. "You, Perseus and Alexandra Jackson, are my second chance. Killing you will allow me to be released from this curse!" Her words echoed over the sound of the chanting crowd.

The spectators were really starting to get on Alex's nerves. She swore she got hit with a french fry.

The ground beneath their feet started to shake. Dirt rained down from the ceiling.

The large wooden doors ahead of them shook dangerously.

"But-" she started again, her voice again close to Alex's ear. "-this time, it's not just going to be the bloodline of Poseidon."

Alex was hit with a sudden wave of vertigo, her ears ringing. She could barely hear the noise around her. She stumbled backward so she was facing the collapsed passageway.

"Thanks to your father's sudden escape, we know exactly where your little camp is," her voice hissed loudly in her ears, overwhelming her senses. "We have already sent forces to burn it to the ground and execute anything that moves."

A scream echoed in Alex's head that made her heart and stomach twist painfully.

 _Sierra_.

Alex felt her heart skip a beat.

"Look at the crowd around you," the voice pressed.

Alex's eyes scanned the crowd against her will.

"This crowd alone would destroy your camp. Imagine what we have already sent-"

A hand roughly grabbed Alex's arm and jerked her back to face the master booth.

"Focus, Alex. She's in your head," her dad warned.

Alex looked up at Mesperyian angrily, her heart pounding.

The witch was smiling greedily at her, the neckline of her dress now stained red. She pouted in faux sympathy. "Oh, I'm sorry, granddaughter of Poseidon. Feel a headache coming on?"

She shrugged off her dad's hand.

Mesperyian couldn't be beaten with mind games. They were going to have to use brute force with her.

Eupalinos, on the other hand.

Alex shifted her attention to the old man.

"You are really going to let this witch speak for you, Eupalinos?" she called.

His eyes widened slightly, surprised that he was being addressed directly.

Alex grinned to herself.

Eupalinos composed himself and stepped forward. "Mesperyian is a bright and driven goddess. Once she sets her sights on a desired goal, there is nothing that can stop her," he said calmly. "Besides," he spat, "Poseidon and his offspring can rot."

 _Son of Athena. Right._

Alex almost forgot about her grandparents' millennia-year-old feud.

How silly of her.

"You're a smart guy, Eupa." Her dad scratched his head. "Can I still call you Eupa? Makes me all warm and fuzzy inside."

Their tactic was working.

Mesperyian was right. There was an army moving towards camp via a tunnel system created by Eupalinos. Alex could feel it and she was sure her father could too. When distracting Eupalinos, she could feel the tunnel system slow its course.

Eupalinos was new to the whole "evil mastermind immortal" bit, and it showed. His powers were weak if he didn't put his entire focus on it.

They had to stop the Son of Athena.

"You're a Son of Athena," Alex said incredulously. "You are seriously going to take orders from this crazy lady in a wedding dress? She looks ridiculous!" She gestured at the witch wildly with her hand. "She obviously has no plans past destroying camp. Every _real_ child of Athena I know has a five, ten, and fifteen-year plan to set them up on the right track for the future. Mesperyian has, what, two weeks? Max?"

Eupalinos frowned.

Alex could feel a tunnel branch collapse, meaning dead monsters.

"Well, we haven't negotiated that part of our deal yet-"

"You're going to try and negotiate with her?" her father exclaimed. "She's crazy, man! She'll get inside your head so you won't know what you want. She's going to manipulate you!"

Mesperyian bared her teeth at them.

"Eupalinos is my trusted associate of whom I would never disrespect! Right, Eupalinos?" she said, turning to him.

He hesitated.

"Well, I mean, you have been stealing my lunch from the communal refrigerator for the past couple of years," he said, not making eye contact with her.

Mesperyian rolled her eyes. "I told you, that was not me! It was Jerry, the telekhine from Logistics!"

"You killed Jerry in a battle over six years ago."

"Not that Jerry, the other one!"

"That Jerry was crushed by a crane last year."

During their argument, Alex said to her dad, "You feel the caves too?"

The caves had stopped moving entirely. He nodded.

"If we stop Eupalinos-"

"We stop the movement towards camp," Alex finished for him.

"Enough!" Mesperyian huffed. "We will discuss this later." She turned back to the duo. She glared at Alex. "I underestimated the strength of Athena in your blood, grandchild of Poseidon. You are more clever than you appear."

Alex tilted her head. "Thanks?"

The witch sighed bored. "Unfortunately, we have run out of time so I will have to cut my monologue short. Eupalinos, bring him in." She sat on her throne and waved her hand above her head.

The scoreboard came to life. On one side read "BLOOD OF POSEIDON" with a score of "0" right below it. The other side was labeled "CHAMPION" with a score of "1729."

The doors began to shake again and Alex could hear roaring coming from behind them.

"Blood of Poseidon, please welcome my undefeated champion!"

Alex and her dad looked nervously at each other.

Eupalinos stood and raised an open hand. "Farewell, blood of Poseidon," he said.

Just as he was about to close his hand, her father yelled out, "WAIT!"

The ground shook beneath them, but it wasn't Eupalinos' doing.

"Mesperyian," Percy called out, taking a step forward. "If you're so powerful, why let another monster do your dirty work? If you want me, _you_ can have me! I was here for twelve years and never once did you step in this ring with me. Think you can't beat a son of Poseidon?"

Alex could hear the witch's growl from their position in the center of the ring.

"You, a child of Poseidon, dare think that I can't defeat you?" her voice echoed across the arena. "I never fought you because I wanted you alive for entertainment." She paused like she was thinking. "But, alas, I do not need you anymore, and my ratings have been very good lately. I guess it is finally my chance for some fun!"

She snapped her fingers and suddenly a column of earth rose her in the air and started to carry her down to the floor of the arena. Eupalinos leaned against the railing of their overlook, looking bored. As Mesperyian came down, the scoreboard behind her flickered. Another section had added itself to the board. It read "MESPERYIAN" with a score of "12204949394" below it.

"Uh, dad, you sure that was a good idea?" Alex asked, her heart rate rising as the imminence of battle came upon her.

Her dad staring confusedly at Mesperyian's approaching figure. "I… I honestly didn't think that would work. I guess we'll find out."

She landed gracefully in front of them, about twenty yards away. She turned to the crowd and when she spoke, her voice was once again echoing throughout the arena. "My lovely followers! What shall we start with? Fire?"

The crowd moaned.

"Spikes?"

There were a few cheers. Alex booed herself at the lame suggestion.

"Poison?"

The crowd erupted.

Mesperyian turned back to them with a wicked grin. Her face was no longer bleeding, but her dress appeared darker, almost a gray color.

"My people have spoken! You shall meet your end with poison!"

As Mesperyian described her plan to kill them to the crowd like a sports announcer analyzing a play, her dad stepped close to Alex.

"Alex, I never wanted you to find out about this ability, but we're going to need it right now," he said hesitantly.

Alex looked at him confused.

"We can control poison, but don't tell Mesperyian."

Alex's eyes widened at the confession. Out of all of the abilities she imagined it could be, that wasn't even on the list.

"We can do _what_?"

"I found it out when I was a kid, okay? Poison has water in it so we can control the water in the poison. I haven't done it since then so Mesperyian doesn't know we can do that. Use that to our advantage."

Her stomach twisted painfully. Despite the messed-up world they lived in, Alex still had a pretty high moral code. Controlling poison, even against monsters, was teetering on that line. To her, some things just weren't meant to be controlled.

He noticed the uncomfortable look on her face. "You don't actually have to use it. Just know that you can, as a last resort, okay?"

Alex nodded her head.

Finally finishing up her monologue, Mesperyian turned back to the duo. Her dress had faded to a pitch-black color.

"Blood of Poseidon, meeting your end with a liquid. How ironic!"

Percy and Alex looked at each other before rushing the witch.

/

Alex quickly realized that Mesperyian was not going to be an issue. The witch captured victims and tortured them, but she didn't fight them in battle. While she could hold her own, she wasn't a match for two demigods who have training for the majority of their lives. She also kept going on about how she couldn't kill them too quickly because she had to introduce her new sponsor at the end of her time slot so she needed to keep her watchers' attention until the very end. Sometime about a new monster soap brand?

Her poison was also not much of a problem. It would materialize in her hands where she could control it, similar to how Alex and Percy could control water. But, it would dissipate somewhat quickly once it left her control when she would shoot it at them. All they had to do was dodge and roll before the next attack. Again, her powers were not meant to be sustainable for an entire battle. The constant fumes from the disappearing poison were starting to make Alex slightly woozy, though, but that was the most of Mesperyrian's powers.

However, Mesperyian _and_ Eupalinos were an almost unstoppable combo. She was untouchable as any time either Percy or Alex got close enough to attack, Eupalinos would scoop her up in a hand of earth and away from the battle. He would open up cracks in the ground that threatened to swallow them with one wrong step. The ground beneath them would suddenly shift, so when Alex looked up she would suddenly be on the other side of the arena.

They were really fighting against Eupalinos the entire time. If they kept up their current plan of defense, they would only tire themselves out which could give Mesperyian an opening.

Eupalinos was still standing in the overlook, lazily moving his hands as he manipulated the dirt.

Alex had to get to him.

She dove to the left to avoid another shot of poison. As she stood, she analyzed the stadium.

The quickest way for her to get to the overlook was through the stands, but they were full of cheering, hot dog-eating monsters, which would make it difficult for Alex to run through them without a sword in her back. She would also need a boost from the first level of stands to the second since it was at the same height as the overlook booth. From Alex's estimates, it was about a fifty-foot jump. Once she got onto that level, she would have to jump the thirty-foot gap between the end of the stands and the overlook. All of this would have to be done without being attacked and also ensuring her father wasn't being overrun by monsters.

Piece of cake.

Alex's eyes were drawn to the JumboTron, only to see a giant, digital version of herself staring right back at her. She was covered in a layer of dirt and her ponytail was everywhere, but otherwise, she was fine. The crowd suddenly cheered and she realized too late why.

Mesperyian's dark form materialized behind her, a growing darkness in her hands. The witch thrust her hands forward and the black liquid rushed at Alex's back.

She heard a yell as she dove, but before she could process the words, the poison hit her arm and voices exploded in her head.

The voices sounded like standing next to a jet engine at take-off, speakers at a metal band concert, a handgun firing, and a volcano erupting, all at once and directly in her ears. Her senses shut down momentarily as the sounds overwhelmed her. She could feel herself fall to the ground, her hands clutching her head, her mouth open in a scream that she couldn't hear.

The voices were mainly indistinguishable, but even in her incapacitated state, she could pick up on a few words.

 _Poseidon, failure, weak, revenge, kill._

Her ears felt like they had been stabbed fifty times and then ripped straight from her head. She couldn't see. She could barely breathe.

The voices continued to hiss at her.

 _Poseidon, failure, weak, revenge, kill._

Her chest suddenly became tight and she felt like she was choking. Was she breathing? She couldn't remember how to breathe. What was her name? Where was she? Was she dead? What was this pain?

 _Poseidon, failure, weak, revenge, kill._

Her mouth opened in a scream again but she felt like she was drowning, the poison entering her lungs and asphyxiating her. In her panic, she could hear her heartbeat, almost louder than the voices.

She was dying. She had to be.

And then, the voices were gone. She gasped for breath as her brain remembered how to function. Her vision came back for her to see her father engaged in hand to hand combat with Mesperyian, distracting her from torturing Alex.

Her head still pounded, her vision was foggy, and the world tilted dangerously as she got an episode of bad vertigo. She sat up from her fetal position and immediately regretted it, her stomach twisting. She fell onto all fours as she retched, her head and stomach on completely different pages.

The poison was the voices. It was a part of Mesperyian's torture.

Alex tried to stand and stumbled as she wiped her mouth, managing to stay on her feet. Her head was slowly clearing as she scooped up her knife unsteadily. She noticed blood dripping from her head, coming from her ears. Her upper arm also burned, likely from where the poison hit her.

Her father was still fighting Mesperyian, but the ground wasn't moving to protect her. Alex looked up to see Eupalinos constantly getting knocked down by jets of water, her father's doing.

Water.

Water could get her to the booth.

She could feel water around her, but it wasn't beneath her.

Suddenly the ground under her dad's feet shot up, knocking him away from Mesperyian. The witch immediately turned back to Alex, her eyes boring into her. She smiled, a thin line of blood falling down her chin.

 _Ah shit._

Her head exploded into the voices again. The sudden intrusion caused her knees to buckle and she fell to the floor again. The pain wasn't as bad as before, but that wasn't saying much. She could at least remember to breathe this time.

What was she thinking about before? It was important.

 _Poseidon, failure, weak, revenge, kill._

Her dad? He was fighting Mesperyian. He was beating her.

 _Poseidon, failure, weak, revenge, kill._

He didn't beat her, though, because he got knocked backward. What knocked him over?

 _Poseidon, failure, weak, revenge, kill._

Dirt. He got knocked over by dirt. Eupalinos moved the ground. He was in the overlook.

 _Poseidon, failure, weak, revenge, kill._

She had to get to Eupalinos to stop him. How was she going to get to him?

 _Poseidon, failure, weak, revenge, kill._

Water. She needed water.

Her head felt like it was being ripped apart from the ears. Her hands and feet were starting to go numb.

Water. She needed water.

Her stomach clenched painfully, but in a familiar way. Then it went away like she didn't have the strength to call the water.

 _Kill, kill, kill._

The pain in her head increased tenfold and Alex lost all sense of herself for a second. She swore she must have died for a second because there was nothing. No feeling, no sight, no thoughts, no pain. Just nothing.

Then she thought of the ocean, furiously bashing against a shore during a storm. Her stomach started to tighten. She thought of an earthquake shaking the Earth, causing a mass tsunami that would come crashing down on all of her enemies.

She screamed, still unable to hear it, but she felt her voice crack from the power behind it. Her stomach cramped and the voices were suddenly gone again. Her senses returned. Her nose was bleeding along with her ears. She rolled onto her back, to see the destruction she had caused.

The stands were in chaos. Apparently she had found the water, but it had been around the circumference of the stadium and under the stands. As a result, there were geysers of water shooting out from cracks at dangerous speeds in the stands, sending monsters running out of the stadium in a panic. Pepsi cups and popcorn rained down into the arena. Various cracks in the infrastructure of the stadium also told her she might have caused a mild earthquake.

Whoops.

Her havoc had caused Eupalinos to turn his attention to saving the structure of the arena. He was trying to fill in gaps and cracks that continued to appear as the pressure from the geysers continued to increase.

This left Mesperyian vulnerable.

Her father wasted no time, looking like an Olympic gymnast with the way he was dodging the bolts of poison the witch was sending at him. The fear of her face showed as she knew she was losing.

It was not going to last if Eupalinos got back into the battle.

Alex pinpointed a geyser that had erupted right in front of the stands, to the left of the overlook. There was another one towards the top of the first level of stands that could boost her to the second.

She stood and took off towards the stands, picking up her knife on the way, still slightly off-balance from the torture she had undergone. She focused on the water and let her body be naturally drawn towards it. Reaching the geyser, she leaped into it, letting the water shove her thirty feet into the air and into the stands.

The water instantly began to work its magic on healing her. Her head cleared and she felt a new wave of energy course through her limbs.

Running up the stairs, she slashed through any monsters that dared to try and stop her. As she did, she could see in her peripheral the scoreboard for BLOOD OF POSEIDON ticking up with each kill. One monster came to attack and realized it only had a fork in defense before quickly running away. Alex was peppered with various food items, but it did little to stop her progress.

She leaped into the second geyser, which shot her up into the second layer of stands. There were few monsters in this section, and they simply turned their backs on her and ran. Sprinting towards the thirty-foot gap that separated her from Eupalinos, she felt for any remaining reservoirs of water that could assist her.

Right before she jumped for the gap, she yelled again, and a cannon of water burst from the wall to her left. She landed on top of it and slid across it on her feet like she was wearing water skis. Using one last bit of energy, she had the water launch her like a trampoline towards the overlook.

Eupalinos turned just in time to be tackled to the ground by the teenager. His eyes widened comically right as Alex tumbled into him. His head cracked against one of the thrones as they fell, knocking him out.

Alex groaned from the rough landing, pulling herself to her feet and dragging herself to the railing to check on her father.

He had Mesperyian's throat at the edge of his sword, his other hand clenching onto one of her wrists to prevent the formation of poison. All that was left of her other hand was a bloody stump from where it had been cut off.

"You took me for twelve years," he hissed at her. His voice still boomed across the arena through the loudspeakers. "You should've killed me when you had the chance."

Mesperyian grinned wickedly. "But then your daughter never would have gotten to see you die, which is the best torture of all."

The black cloud formed behind her father and time seemed to slow down. She could see Mesperyian's handless arm somewhat raised, summoning the poison. Her dad had a confused look on his face before his eyes widened in fear. Alex could see the poison surging towards him.

"NO!"

She threw her hands out, not sure of what she was trying to do.

Her dad had said it was like controlling water.

He couldn't have been further from the truth. It was like saying raising a pet fish was similar to raising a child, like riding a bike was similar to driving a tractor-trailer. As soon as she felt a small bit of control over the poison, her stomach felt like it had bent, a second away from snapping. She knew once it snapped, there was no going back.

But her father's life was on the line. Fuck moral codes.

With a grunt, she grabbed hold of the poison, stopping it in its tracks. She gasped as the thing in her stomach snapped clean in half. It took her breath away, but she felt more powerful than ever. She felt like she could stop a drakon with her bare hands.

Her dad's head snapped to look at her with an expression of both pride and sadness like he wished she would never have to use this power but proud she had the strength to do so.

Taking a deep breath, she threw her hands apart like she was ripping a piece of paper. The poison dissipated.

Mesperyian looked at her in surprise and fear.

"Oh, yeah," her dad said, "I forgot to mention we could do that."

She snarled.

"You can't kill me! I am a goddess, you ignorant-"

The witch was cut off by a loud roar, coming from directly below Alex. The arena shook, one of the support columns next to the overlook starting to crumble.

 _Time to go._

Alex called on the water one last time to carry her to the relative safety of the ground. She ran to her dad, who was still holding onto Mesperyian. She didn't have any fight left in her, as she simply stared in horror at the large doors in front of them.

Percy said, "I might not be able to kill you-" the monster roared again, "-but that might be able to."

He shoved her to her knees in front of them, but she didn't seem to notice.

"No, no, my TV ratings, no," she muttered to herself, almost hysterical. She started to rock herself.

"We should go," Percy said to his daughter, unable to take his eyes away from the doors that were now violently shaking. The overlook and columns were starting to collapse.

They ran to the edge of the arena, where they came from. Their original passageway had been collapsed by Eupalinos so Alex didn't see the point until her dad put a hand on the rubble.

"He only blocked the entrance but not the tunnel. I think I can get through," he said, stepping back. Alex followed his lead.

He closed his eyes and concentrated. The ground started to shake.

"You're going to take down the doors," Alex warned.

"Then get ready to run."

A small crack opened under the rubble. It continued to get wider, causing the collapsed rocks and dirt to fall away into it. It opened to show a clear passageway behind it.

"It's working!" Alex exclaimed.

Her dad was so cool.

Finally, the passageway was almost cleared, enough for them to pass through. The crack slowly started to close, giving them enough space to walk around.

"Not bad, right?" her dad joked, a tired smile on his face. He was slightly pale.

 _BOOM_!

Alex turned to see the doors on the ground behind them, a great plume of dust obscuring the monster behind it.

Mesperyian stood and wailed, "My champion, please, spare me!"

Its eyes materialized in the dust. They were bright red, with white pupils. The eyes got bigger as it slithered from its prison. The dust cleared, revealing the drakon in all of its might. It was as big as four tractor-trailers end-to-end. It made the drakon that injured Sierra look like a baby. Its scales were rust-colored, each scale ending in a sharp point that shined dangerously in the light.

It came right up to Mesperyian. She reached up and touched its nose, and for a second Alex thought they were absolutely screwed. The monster almost seemed to lean into her touch.

"My champion," Mesperyian whispered.

The drakon hissed and with a flash of its jaws, Mesperyian was gone.

The scoreboard, somehow still intact, flashed. The "CHAMPION" score ticked up to "1730."

Alex cursed in shock before quickly shutting her mouth.

The drakon's eyes focused on her. She felt like she couldn't move, not because its eyes were paralyzing her, but because it was _really_ terrifying to look at it in the eyes.

"Move!" her dad called, grabbing her arm and pulling her towards the passageway.

Alex collected herself and allowed herself to be pulled, taking off behind him. She could hear the monster roar and start to follow them, but she refused to look back to check.

They ran through the immediate entrance and continued fifty yards into the tunnel before her dad stopped. She stopped with him.

"We have to close it," he said.

Alex nodded.

The drakon was quickly approaching.

"On three-," she said.

"Just make everything shake," he finished.

Alex closed her eyes and tried to block out the sound of the _absolutely petrifying_ monster trying to chase them and viciously kill them.

"Three!" her dad said.

Alex gasped and closed her fist, pulled at the earth in front of them. She stumbled as the ground violently shook with their combined powers. The structure of the entranceway was already weak from being collapsed once so it didn't take much to collapse it again. Twenty yards worth of rock and dirt filled the passageway in front of them, effectively blocking the path of the drakon.

The last thing Alex saw from the arena was the drakon's red eyes staring murderously at her before the cavern was completely filled.

The ground stilled and they took a moment to catch their breaths. Her dad was pale and sweating.

"I'm fine," he said in response to her concerned look. "I'm just old, okay?"

Alex chuckled despite their situation. Her dad seemed to have that effect.

"Is Eupalinos still alive?" he asked as they started to jog their way through the tunnel.

"I think so. He hit his head pretty good, but I don't think he's dead."

"So we only bought some time. He'll send that drakon to camp as soon as he's back on his feet. I think the other army's tunnel system collapsed during the battle because I can't sense it anymore, but that doesn't mean he won't more. We probably only have a few hours, at most."

Alex followed her dad as they took a right.

"How do you know where we're going now?" she asked.

"Eupalinos has controlled this part of the Labyrinth for a while, which means it doesn't naturally change any more. With him down, it hasn't changed since we left so we're going backward."

"But once Eupalinos is awake again…"

"He'll have full control of the Labyrinth without Mesperyian to stop him. We'd be lucky if he didn't just collapse the whole section on top of us."

"So we should probably hurry?"

"Yeah, we should probably hurry."

They quickened their pace to a sprint as they went to warn their family and friends of the imminent battle.

/

 **How about this nice, long, battle-filled bad boy for y'all?**

 **I decided to treat y'all and post this all at once instead of breaking it up. So much happens in a single second of battle, and I wanted to describe everything so that's why it's long. Hope y'all don't mind.**

 **So there's only one chapter left in this story? Pretty wack if you ask me. The idea that this story has been EIGHT YEARS in the making and is almost over is wack. I was literally in middle school when I first started writing this on my iPod Touch 4.**

 **Also, I think I'm noticing a trend with drakons. AKA I can't come up with a monster scarier than a drakon that I can describe in detail and still be somewhat accurate to Greek mythology.**

 **I posted two new compilations that will house my one-shots from now on. One is random ideas and the other is what-ifs from the actual book series. I only have one chapter for each right now but that will hopefully change soon! Check them out! Let me know what you thought about this chapter!**

 **Sorry for any errors, blah blah blah. See y'all soon.**


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